taylor price
ojovivo
todays bird
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macklin celebrini has autism
One Nice Bug Per Day
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oozey mess
RMH
shark vs the universe
Stranger Things
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Product Placement
๐
blake kathryn
titsay
@theartofmadeline
Kiana Khansmith
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Sade Olutola
seen from Tรผrkiye
seen from Argentina
seen from United Kingdom
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seen from Venezuela
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seen from Finland
seen from Spain
seen from Malaysia
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Czechia
seen from Bangladesh
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seen from Tรผrkiye
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@pinkcamelia
แดแดแดแดษชแด'๊ฑ แดแด๊ฑแดแดสสษช๊ฑแด
โคท A little corner dedicated to stories that let you fall in love with your favorite characters over and over again. Explore, enjoy, and get lost in every story. Donโt forget to check the tags to find your favorite โก
๐๐๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ฌ
Circuit Hearts: android au
The warmest machine โฟ Rengoku Kyojurล
A Heart Without a Heartbeat โฟ Tomioka Giyลซ
๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐๐ฅ๐ซ
โขโโโโโขยฐโขสแด๊ฑสษชสแดโขยฐโขโโโโโข
๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ข๐จ๐ค๐ ๐๐ข๐ฒ๐ฎ
When the rumors were right
Youยดre in a secret relationship with the water Hashira +18
๐๐ก๐ข๐ง๐๐ณ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฐ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ข
You read something you weren't supposed to ยน
You read something you weren't supposed to ยฒ
๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ซ๐จ ๐๐๐๐ง๐๐ข
He never learn to say no to you
๐๐๐ง๐ ๐จ๐ค๐ฎ ๐๐ฒ๐จ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ซ๐จ
He forgets he can be taken care of
๐๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ฃ๐ข๐ฆ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ข
The Hashira who doesn't blush
๐๐ณ๐ฎ๐ข ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ง
You are the only voice he listents to
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
The Hashira when they go on a dangerous mission
The Hashira giving you your first kiss
The Hashira when you fall asleep on their shoulder
The Hashira when you confess by accident
โขโโโโขยฐโขแดแดแดแดส แดแดแดษด๊ฑโขยฐโขโโโโข
๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐ง๐ค ๐๐ฐ๐จ, ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐
He learns how love works
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
You are going on a difficult mission and the Upper Moons disagree +18
๐ผ๐๐๐ ๐ป๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐: ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐
M a s t e r l i s t โฟ A O 3 p r o f i l e
Pairings: Tengen x reader
Word count: 2.7k
Warnings: none.
Tags: comedyโ stolen kiss โ fluff
โคท Tengen never needs anyoneโs approval. He knows what he wants, makes his own decisions and never doubts himselfโฆ except when it comes to you.
Uzui Tengen doesn't need anyone's approval, that's something everyone knows.
He doesn't hesitate when entering a room, he doesn't lower his voice when he has something to say, and he never stops to wonder if what he's doing is enough. Tengen doesn't walk into a room like everyone else, he enters as if the entire world should momentarily turn its attention toward him and acknowledge his presence.
That's why you're not surprised when he appears in front of you with something new. You're already used to his excesses, his extravagant ideas, and his tendency to turn even the smallest detail into something worthy of admiration. What still manages to surprise you, however, is that, out of all the people he could go to, you're always the first person he chooses to show something to.
"Well?"
You raise your eyes from the report you're reading and find Tengen standing in front of the engawa, an arrogant smile on his face as he holds a small open box between his fingers.
Inside there is a pair of earrings. They're eye-catching, of course, it would be strange if they weren't considering it's Tengen. The green stones shine beneath the afternoon light, surrounded by small silver details that reflect every movement.
"They're pretty," you lean slightly closer to look at them.
Tengen immediately smiles. "I knew it."
The smug satisfaction in his voice makes you roll your eyes.
"But..." you tilt your head slightly, looking at them more carefully, and Tengen's expression changes. "I think rubies suit you better."
Tengen's eyebrows raise slightly, and he lowers his gaze toward the box he's holding in his hands, thinking about your words. "Yeah?"
He doesn't seem bothered. On the contrary, he seems to be considering your answer with complete seriousness.
"Then I'll find different ones."
"You're going to change them just because I said so?" you blink in surprise.
Tengen shrugs.
"I trust your judgment."
His response catches you off guard.
Tengen doesn't need anyone to tell him what to do, he never has. He's someone who makes his own decisions, who walks with confidence, knowing exactly who he is and what he wants, but even so, when it comes to you, he seems to have no problem stopping and listening.
Before you can answer, he carefully closes the box and puts it away while he begins walking toward the exit.
"I'll find something more flashy, something that actually stands out."
A few days later, you're training with Mitsuri when the subject comes up.
"Uzui-san always asks you about everything," Mitsuri observes you with a curious expression, although a smile quickly appears on her face.
"Of course, I have better taste than him," you joke, getting into position to charge at her again with your sword.
Unlike other Hashira, whose presence can feel heavy or intimidating even when they're not fighting, Mitsuri makes it easy to relax around her. Her movements are quick and precise, but she never loses the kind expression that defines her.
Her sweet expression disappears the moment she enters combat, replaced by a focus that shows exactly why she's a Hashira. She takes a step forward with a speed that completely contradicts the softness of her movements, turning the wooden sword at an unexpected angle before directing a strike toward your side.
You block the attack with your own sword, feeling the force of the impact travel through your arms. The dry sound of wood meeting wood echoes across the training field while both of you remain still for a moment, applying pressure in opposite directions.
After another exchange, both of you stop to catch your breath. Mitsuri sits on the grass, placing her sword to the side while taking some water.
"Going back to the topic of Uzui-san... When he needs to choose something, has a new idea, or wants to know if something suits him, he always ends up asking you."
You lower your gaze for a moment, remembering the small box of earrings in his hands, his expression while waiting for your answer, and how quickly he accepted changing his mind.
"I don't think it's that big of a deal," you make a face, knowing how false it sounds. Mitsuri tilts her head, clearly disagreeing.
"He's someone who's very confident in himself. He never doubts his own decisions," Mitsuri smiles in a slightly softer way, looking at you from the corner of her eye. "I think he trusts you a lot."
"Because he knows I'll tell him the truth."
"Exactly," Mitsuri seems excited by the conclusion, as if she's just discovered something important. "That's what's most interesting!"
"What is?" you look at her confused.
"That Uzui-san, out of everyone, seems to value the opinion of someone who isn't trying to impress him the most."
The comment leaves you speechless as the pieces slowly start connecting in your mind. Tengen is surrounded by people who recognize his strength, his extravagance, and his presence. Everyone knows who Uzui Tengen is, but with you he doesn't seem to be looking for admiration, only honesty.
"Besides..." Mitsuri stands up while picking up her wooden sword, preparing to continue training. "I think it might also be because he likes you."
Your heart skips a beat and you stare at her with wide eyes. Mitsuri opens her eyes wide when she realizes what she just said and quickly waves her hands in front of herself.
"Although I don't know! I don't want to assume anything, but..."
"I don't think it's because of that..." you try to interrupt, needing to correct the idea before allowing yourself to think too much about it.
"...You should talk about it with him," Mitsuri blinks several times when she finishes speaking, analyzing what you said. "Love is a beautiful feeling, you shouldn't shut yourself away from the possibility of it."
"What if it's not anything like that?"
"Then nothing will have happened," Mitsuri smiles. "But if it is..."
She leaves the sentence unfinished, allowing you to imagine the rest.
Then she takes a combat stance and, as if the previous conversation wasn't enough to make your thoughts spiral, she smiles enthusiastically again.
"Now come on, we still have to finish training."
You raise your wooden sword with a sigh, preparing for the next exchange. If you keep talking about Tengen your head is going to explode.
"Are you going to keep talking about this while we fight?"
Mitsuri places a finger on her chin, pretending to think.
"Probably."
Now that Mitsuri has put the idea in your head, you start noticing the little things.
You start realizing that, even though Tengen is still Tengen, he still enters a room as if he expects everyone to look at him, there are certain moments when his arrogance fades in front of you.
One morning, Tengen appears in front of you with a new golden chain adorning his hair.
It's the kind of accessory only Tengen would wear. It shines under the daylight, matches the rest of his appearance, and has that exaggerated touch that would make anyone else raise an eyebrow at the sight of it.
"Too much?"
You stare at him slightly open-mouthed. "Did you just ask me if it's too much? You!?"
"What? Can't a man ask for an opinion?" The way he says it tries to sound casual, but you notice that he's actually waiting for your answer.
"Well, in that case... A little," you shrug.
Tengen brings a hand to his hair and touches the chain with his fingers, looking at it as if he's reconsidering his choice.
"Yeah?"
"But it doesn't look bad on you," you quickly add, and that seems to be enough because a small sense of satisfaction crosses Tengen's face before he continues with the rest of his day.
During training, he's no longer wearing the chain.
You don't comment on it, assuming he simply decided to change it, because that's something Tengen does constantly. He's always trying new things that fit better with the image he has of himself.
Until he appears again with a new bracelet.
"What do you think?" he asks, and you lower your gaze toward his wrist.
The bracelet is elegant, although less exaggerated than other accessories he usually wears. It has smaller details with rubies embedded into it, but it still has that unmistakable Tengen touch.
"It's pretty," you admire it, bringing your hand closer to brush it with your index finger.
Tengen smiles slightly. "More than the previous one?"
"Yeah, I like it more," you whisper with a soft smile.
He does the same thing as last time, nods, and continues with his day, but this time the bracelet stays on his wrist for an entire week. Even when someone else comments that the previous one was more eye-catching, that it had more presence, or that it matched his usual style better, Tengen doesn't change his mind.
"I need to ask you something," Tengen tells you a few days later.
"What's wrong?"
"I'm thinking about retiring from some missions."
"Retiring?" you gasp in surprise.
Tengen nods slowly.
"I've spent too many years thinking only about the next mission," his gaze turns toward the sky with a slight melancholic expression. "I don't regret it, I'd do it again if necessary, but... I think the time has come to live for something more."
"Uzui-san, that's... That's a very important decision," you murmur, taking a few steps closer to him.
"Oh, come on! Don't act shy... Don't you think a man like me deserves a peaceful life?"
"Of course! Of course you do. You, me, all of us have fought for years, we deserve it," the smile Tengen gives you makes you blush.
"You already answered the question." Seeing your confused expression, Tengen continues. "I wanted to know your opinion."
You lower your gaze for a moment, unable to keep looking at that gentle smile he's giving you.
"Huh? But..." you murmur, raising your head. "If you feel now is the time to stop, you don't have to consider anyone's opinion. Do what you think is right."
Tengen stays silent. His eyes, normally so lively and confident, linger on every word you say with an attention that makes you feel strangely nervous. You swallow and he takes a few steps closer. Tengen reaches out his hand, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear, and you flinch.
"I knew you'd say something like that," he murmurs, his warm breath brushing against your forehead. "You always know what to say."
"Is that why you ask for my opinion about everything?" you can't help but ask.
"No," Tengen smiles mischievously. "There's a pretty simple reason, actually."
You frown.
You hate when Tengen decides to tease you, and the worst part is that he seems to especially enjoy doing it. He always finds a way to say things with that arrogant smile that frustrates you so much, stretching the joke just long enough to get a reaction out of you.
"If you don't plan on telling me, I'm leaving-"
"Because I'm in love with you."
You stare at him, convinced that at any moment he'll burst out laughing and say it was another one of his jokes. You wait a second, but Tengen's expression doesn't change.
"What?" The word leaves your lips in a whisper.
"You heard me," Tengen shrugs.
How can he stand there so calmly, acting as if he didn't just change the way you've seen every conversation you've ever had with him?
"Tengen... if this is one of your jokes, I swear to God-"
"Oh, are we calling each other by our names now?"
"Tengen!"
He lets out a brief laugh, but this time there's no teasing in it, only a warmth that makes your heart race again.
"I'm completely serious," his smile doesn't disappear.
That is even more confusing than if it were a joke. You expected him to say that he was just messing with you, that it was another one of his ways of getting you to lose your patience. That would have been easier to understand.
Tengen doesn't take his eyes off yours.
The man who never seems to doubt anything is looking at you as if this is the clearest decision he's ever made in his entire life.
You can't believe Mitsuri was right. The thought hits you suddenly, and you almost want to laugh at how absurd the situation is. She's probably going to remind you about it for the rest of your life every chance she gets.
"...Oh," you finally murmur. "What about...?" You hesitate for a few seconds before continuing. "What about your wives? This..."
Tengen's expression softens slightly, as if he was expecting that question.
"They're okay with it. I've already talked to them."
"Really!?" you squeal, bringing your hands to your face.
"They know me pretty well," he pauses, bringing his hand to your chin and tilting your head upward. "They know I don't do anything unless I'm sure."
The proximity makes your heart race even more, pounding hard against your ribs. Tengen's hand moves from your chin to gently cup your cheek with a tenderness that makes you want to melt.
"You still haven't answered my confession, you know? That's not very flashy of you," he murmurs, lowering his face closer to yours.
Tengen's smile widens slightly when he sees your nervous expression, although this time there's no intention of teasing you.
"I don't understand how you can be so calm," you admit after a few seconds. "Is it really that easy for you?"
"It wasn't easy." Tengen's fingers gently brush your cheek before moving away slightly, giving you space. "I spent years believing my life only had value as long as I could keep fighting, that as long as I was useful, as long as I could protect others, that was enough."
Tengen's gaze drifts away for a moment, looking at the garden in front of you both.
The afternoon light reflects on his hair and the accessories that have always been such a big part of him, but now none of those details seem to be the most important thing. For a moment, he looks younger, more human, as if he has finally let go of that enormous presence he carries on his shoulders to show you a more vulnerable part of himself.
"But after everything that happened, after seeing so many people lose everything... I started thinking that maybe surviving wasn't the end of the road." Tengen's magenta eyes settle on you. "Maybe I could allow myself to want something of my own."
"Tengen... I also am-"
"Besides, let's be honest. I have excellent taste."
A bit of Tengen's arrogant smile returns.
You stay silent for a few seconds.
"Did you just ruin the moment? Are you being serious?"
"I'm just staying true to my style."
You can't help but laugh, and it seems like that's what Tengen wanted to hear, because he smiles in satisfaction and takes a few steps closer.
"You're unbearable," you complain, lightly hitting his shoulder while wiping the corner of your eye.
"That's one of my best qualities," he raises his eyebrows suggestively.
You shake your head, but the smile you're trying to hide appears anyway. Tengen looks at you, tilting his head, and gently intertwines his fingers with yours.
"So," he murmurs. "Do I have to wait long to know if the most extravagant man you know has a chance?"
Instead of answering, you pull on the collar of his haori and dare to crash your lips against his in a quick, clumsy kiss that doesn't even give Tengen enough time to respond.
You pull away a few centimeters, wanting to tease the bewildered expression on Tengen's face. It's impossible to believe; he, who always seems to be one step ahead of everyone, looks at you with his mouth slightly open, as if he's still processing that you really just stole a kiss from him.
"What? Did I leave the great Uzui Tengen speechless?" you joke, stepping away a few steps, amused.
"Did you really just kiss me?" He comes out of his daze, his hands wrapping around your waist and pulling you closer. "That's not fair! I was supposed to be the one who made the first move..."
"I guess you'll have to settle for being beaten once," you murmur, trying to hold back a smile.
"Once?" Tengen narrows his eyes, pretending to be offended.
"Once."
"How cruel."
The dramatic way he says it makes you shake your head while laughing, but you can't help noticing how his fingers remain intertwined with yours, with no intention of letting go.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
I am such a huge fan of your work! I came across your Circuits series in AO and loved it! You are such an amazing writer!
This is a lovely surprise to wake up to, thank you so much!! you're so sweet โก
Spoilers for A Heart Without a Heartbeat | Series: Circuit Hearts | Chapter 1 | Rated T | Tomioka Giyuu x reader
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
"Do you still think about her a lot?" the question leaves your lips softly.
Giyลซ's face tightens slightly, his gaze remains fixed outside, but you know he heard you.
"I have reviewed my task records one hundred and seventeen times since her passing, searching for any procedure that could have increased her life expectancy."
"Oh, Giyลซ..." you murmur, sitting beside him. "I'm so sorry, I..."
"There is nothing to apologize for, I do not have the ability to experience loss in the same way as humans do."
The answer should have sounded cold, but you notice Giyลซ's unease beneath it.
"Even so, even if it's not in the same way, you feel her absence," you give him a small sad smile. "There was nothing you could have done, she was sick, it was something you couldn't fix."
"The medical analyses indicated that her condition was irreversible, the deterioration was progressive. The available interventions did not guarantee recovery," Giyลซ pauses. "I know there was no solution, but there must be a cause."
"A cause?" you frown slightly.
"An error, an incorrect decision, a moment where if I had acted differently, I could have changed the outcome."
Your chest tightens and you feel your eyes growing wet. Giyลซ is grieving too: he can't cry like you can, he can't stare at a photograph for hours feeling like he can't breathe, nor remember your grandmother's voice and feel an emptiness inside his body, but he can review every moment he shared with her, trying to find a way he could have saved her.
"Giyลซ, please..." you whisper with a broken voice, placing your hand over his without thinking. "Don't torture yourself anymore."
Giyลซ slightly turns his head toward you when he hears those words, he doesn't seem to understand the meaning of torturing himself.
To him, it isn't suffering, not in the way you understand it. There is no wound that hurts, no tightness in his throat preventing him from breathing, and no tears gathering in his eyes because his body doesn't work that way.
The gap between humans and androids seems to grow wider.
Your hand remains over his, feeling his artificial warmth beneath your fingers. Giyลซ's synthetic skin perfectly imitates the temperature of a real body, but you know that beneath that surface there is no blood running through his veins and no pulse responding to your touch.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
A Heart Without a Heartbeat
The second part of the series Circuit Hearts is finally here!! and this time it's Tomioka Giyลซยดs turn!
Unlike Kyojurล's story, this one leans a little more into grief and healing (with a touch of fluff, of course), while exploring what it means to find a new home after saying goodbye.
You can read it here.
As always, thank you so much for reading. I hope you enjoy it!
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
๐ซ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐: ๐ฏ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐
M a s t e r l i s t โฟ A O 3 p r o f i l e
Pairing: Dลma x reader
Word count: 3.5k
Warnings: minor religious themes, excessive descriptions of Dลma's rainbow eyes because I'm obsessed with them.
Tags: light angstโ learning to love โ touch-starved
โคท Dลma starts copying happy couples to understand love. Somewhere along the way, it stops being an experiment.
The first time Upper rank two, Dลma pays attention to a couple isn't even because he's interested, it happens purely by chance.
He's sitting on a bench in the town square, absentmindedly rolling a coin between his fingers. The night stretches peacefully over the village, wrapped in a dark blanket torn apart only by the trembling glow of paper lanterns and the few oil lamps still burning outside the shops.
There are far too many people around him for his liking, children running back and forth, vendors calling out to advertise goods that probably nobody needs, and conversations blending together until they become one endless murmur.
It's boring, far too boring.
He's about to leave when something catches his attention, a young man buys a flower.
It doesn't look particularly beautiful. In fact, several of its petals are bent and the stem is slightly crooked, enough to make Dลma wonder why anyone would spend money on something so unremarkable.
The young man, however, doesn't seem to notice those little flaws at all. He leaves a few coins on the stall with a smile that's impossible to hide and, the moment the flower is in his hands, he runs toward a young woman waiting several yards away.
She doesn't even need to look at it properly for her whole face to light up. She accepts the flower with flushed cheeks before wrapping her arms around his neck in an embrace. Then they continue walking as though that exchange had been the most ordinary thing in the world, yet from where he's sitting, Dลma can't seem to look away.
He frowns slightly, unable to understand what he's just witnessed. The flower has no real value. Anyone could pick one just like it from a field without spending a single coin, and yet that young woman's expression had changed as though she'd just received the most extraordinary gift in the world.
But if there's one thing Dลma has learned from watching humans, it's that the best way to understand them is never by asking questions, it's by imitating them.
A slow smile spreads across his lips.
You aren't expecting any visitors that night. In fact, you're convinced you'll spend the rest of the evening completely alone.
You've just finished setting your gear down on the table when an icy breeze slips through the open window and a cold breath brushes against one side of your face.
"Hello, darling," Dลma murmurs with a small smile while you jump and instinctively reach for the hilt of your sword.
"Dลma! Warn me before you come in," you complain, pressing a hand to your chest, where your heart is pounding. "And please, use the door."
"Oh my, I'm sorry," he says, tilting his head, though he doesn't look sorry in the slightest. "I'll do that next time."
You can't help letting out a sigh before smiling, there's something about Dลma that keeps disarming you. His questions are strange, yes, and the way he watches other people can be unsettling at times, but you never sense any malice behind it. If anything, he seems like someone trying to solve a puzzle whose rules everyone understands except him.
You turn around, eager to take a long bath and wash away all the grime you've brought back from the mission you finished that very morning, when you hear a soft clearing of his throat behind you.
"Here."
Dลma awkwardly brings out the hand he'd been hiding behind his back without you even noticing.
You take the flower, confusion written all over your face.
You hold it between your fingers for a few seconds, turning it slightly as you study the bent petals. There's nothing special about it. It's an ordinary flower, the kind anyone could find at the very first stall in the market, and yet when you look back up at Dลma, you find him watching you intently.
"Thank you," you murmur, unable to hide the smile on your face. "Butโฆ why are you giving it to me?"
"Oh?" Dลma places a hand over his chest, his eyebrows shooting up. "Can't I give a flower to my beloved?"
"Dลma."
"Fine," he sighs dramatically, leaning against the wall. "I had an idea."
"That never ends well," you narrow your eyes, and Dลma flashes you an amused smile.
"This morning I saw a man buy a flower," he begins. You raise an eyebrow but stay silent, letting him continue. "It wasn't pretty, but he still gave it to the woman he was with, and she smiled before hugging him."
His gaze drops to the flower you're still holding between your fingers before slowly returning to your face.
"Humans are so foolish. They're satisfied with anything."
"Excuse me?" you snap, but Dลma raises a hand before you can continue.
"I just thought it was curious. The flower was something insignificant, and yet she smiled as though he'd given her the whole world." Dลma's rainbow eyes lock onto yours, stealing your breath away. "I wanted to see if you'd smile like that too."
You stare at him for a few seconds, completely bewildered, ignoring the blush warming your cheeks before a quiet laugh slips out through your nose.
"You're hopeless."
"Soโฆ does that mean it worked?"
A few days later, he does something else that completely disarms you, this time while the two of you are walking through the town center.
Beside you, Dลma walks with his hands tucked inside the sleeves of his haori, taking in everything around him with interest. The conversation, as always whenever you're with him, drifts wherever his latest whim takes it.
He swears the dog lying in front of the butcher's shop has exactly the same expression as the baker on the corner whenever someone asks him to lower the price of bread.
A few minutes later, he points at a particularly long cloud and insists it looks like a giant fish trying to swallow the moon.
Before you can answer, he changes the subject again to complain that someone painted a door blue even though the entire building is red and, according to him, "it completely ruins the harmony of the street."
You never know how he manages to connect one thought to the next, and you're not even sure he knows either.
Even so, you end up following the conversation with quiet laughs and resigned replies, because arguing with Dลma is almost always far more exhausting than simply agreeing with him.
That's when you feel the faintest brush against the back of your hand.
Dลma's fingers have just slipped carefully between yours. He gives your hand a light squeeze for a few seconds before continuing to walk as though he hasn't done anything out of the ordinary, and it wouldn't be out of the ordinary for most people, but Dลma isn't an affectionate person.
You keep walking for another couple of steps, far too surprised to do anything else, until you finally come to a stop in the middle of the street.
Dลma barely turns his head toward you, patiently waiting for you to speak.
"W-What are you doing?" you stammer, far too flustered to keep yourself under control.
His gaze drops to your intertwined hands.
"I saw a couple walking like this yesterday."
As he answers, he threads his fingers a little more securely through yours, studying the gesture with the same curiosity a child would have while taking apart a toy just to figure out how it works.
"You're still doing this?" you complain, even though your heart is racing.
"Of course, darling," he says with a cheerful smile. "You're my beloved."
You open your mouth to answer, only to fall silent. You're starting to hate how effortlessly he leaves you speechless.
Over the following weeks, the "experiments" continue.
One night, after returning from an especially long mission, you find him waiting for you, sitting on the wooden fence surrounding your house. He absentmindedly swings one leg while holding a small paper-wrapped package in his hands.
The moment he sees you approaching, he jumps down and holds it out toward you.
"For you."
You frown slightly before unwrapping the package, It's your favorite dessert.
"You saw that with another couple too?" you ask, surprised that he remembered something like that.
Dลma nods without the slightest hint of embarrassment.
"Yes."
He stays silent while watching your expression so intently you can almost feel the weight of his gaze resting on your face. He doesn't seem interested in the dessert at all. The only thing that matters to him is finding out whether the result will be the same as it was with the flower.
You end up smiling without meaning to, and he smiles too, confirming that the outcome is exactly the same.
Another day, the two of you are walking along a forest path when a gust of wind tosses your hair into disarray. You don't notice until you feel careful fingers brushing a strand away from your cheek.
You immediately look up, and Dลma pulls his hand back with a small smile that makes his eyes close.
Another day, the cold catches both of you off guard while you're walking through the village. Without warning, Dลma stops in front of you and reaches both hands toward your neck, making you flinch.
"What are you doing?" you murmur.
"Don't move."
With a level of concentration that seems completely unlike him, he straightens the scarf wrapped around your neck, smooths out one end that had folded over, and makes sure it's covering you properly again.
Dลma takes a step back to admire the result. "That's better."
One day, this whole situation of being Dลma's guinea pig becomes a problem.
You've grown used to finding him waiting for you whenever you come back from a mission, to listening to one of his ridiculous observations while the two of you wander aimlessly hand in hand, to him showing up with a flower, a dessert, or some other completely unexpected little gift simply because, according to him, "a couple did the same thing the other day."
And the touches, those damned touches.
The way his fingers seek out your cheek to wipe away the tiniest speck of dirt, the habit he's developed of brushing his knuckles against your face whenever he manages to make you laugh, the absentminded circles his fingertips trace over the back of your hand while you walk together, even the way he's started resting a hand against the small of your back every time you cross a crowded street, as though he's afraid of losing you in the crowd.
Dลma is only trying to understand humans. He isn't doing any of it because it comes naturally to him.
You try to repeat that to yourself over and over every time your heart skips a beat when he threads his fingers through yours or leans in to brush a strand of hair away from your face with a gentleness you never would've expected from someone like him.
As soon as he finds the answer he's looking forโฆ he'll stop asking you questions, and once he stops asking you questions, he'll stop bringing you flowers, stop holding your hand, stop waiting for you after your missions, and stop stroking you affectionately whenever he gets the chance.
You don't know if you're ready for when that day comes.
The path leading to the shrine is completely deserted.
At this hour of the night, the only sounds are the murmur of the wind drifting through the treetops and the soft crunch of gravel beneath your footsteps. The stone lanterns lining the path cast a faint glow over the steps, enough to paint your long shadows between the torii gates leading to the main shrine building.
With Dลma, silence has gradually become something unusual. The two of you walk side by side while he absentmindedly observes the shrine, the paper streamers swaying in the breeze, and the wooden prayer plaques where worshippers leave their written wishes. You, on the other hand, are only aware of him.
"I don't understand why we pray so much to a deity that doesn't exist," your voice breaks the silence without warning.
Dลma lifts his gaze toward a small row of ema gently swaying beneath the shrine's roof.
"Because they like believing someone's listening."
"And does that work?" you ask, raising an eyebrow.
"It doesn't matter whether it works," he says, pausing briefly as he runs his tongue across his lips. "They just need to believe it will. Humans like taking shelter in that whenever they want to escape pain."
Dลma falls silent, simply watching the wooden plaques for a few seconds before starting to walk again. You follow without saying anything, letting the silence settle between you once more.
When you reach the highest point of the shrine, you decide to stop. From there, most of the town stretches out below you, dotted with tiny lights that are still glowing despite the late hour. The air is colder here, and a gentle breeze stirs a few loose strands of your hair.
You rest your forearms against the wooden railing, and Dลma comes to stand beside you. It doesn't take him long before he turns his face toward you.
"The way you're looking at me is starting to worry me," you say, unable to bear the silence.
The corner of his lips curves ever so slightly. "Which way?"
"That way," you reply, glancing at him out of the corner of your eye with a faint frown.
When you finally gather the courage to meet his gaze, he's looking at you exactly the same way as before. There's no trace of the teasing smile he usually wears when he's trying to get under your skin, nor that childlike look that's always accompanied by endless questions.
A knot slowly forms in your throat, there's something in his eyes that makes your skin prickle.
He looks vulnerable.
Beneath the silver light of the moon, his eyes seem to lose any resemblance to those of a human being. The colors melt into one another as though someone had spilled paint across his irises, catching flashes of pink, gold, and turquoise every time the breeze stirs the branches overhead.
They're beautiful eyes, unreal, so mesmerizing that it's easy to forget they belong to a demon capable of painting an entire forest with blood.
A creature for whom you're betraying the Demon Slayer Corps.
"Are you going to answer me?" you ask almost in a whisper, unable to stop your hands from trembling.
"You're very beautiful."
Your lips part slightly, once again unable to find an answer ever since this whole madness began. For weeks you've learned to trace the origin of every one of his gestures, but this time, you can't.
The compliment hangs between the two of you, as fragile as the silence that follows it.
Dลma doesn't look away, the moon continues reflecting in his eyes, making their colors shift with every slight movement of his head. The pink fades into gold, then an almost crystal-blue appears, one you've never noticed so clearly before. He's beautiful, painfully beautiful.
You wonder how many people have died staring into those same eyes without ever realizing they were the last thing they'd see in their lives, and yet right now, you can't find even the slightest trace of cruelty in them.
Your heart pounds so hard against your chest that you wonder if he can hear it too, he probably can, demons hear everything.
You lower your gaze for a moment, unable to endure that intensity any longer. Before you can gather your thoughts, though, you feel cold fingers slipping beneath your chin.
Dลma gently tilts your face back up with a tenderness that contradicts the strength you know he possesses.
"What's wrong?" you ask, your voice coming out far shakier than you'd intended.
He takes a few seconds before answering. His eyes deliberately wander across every corner of your face, as though he's trying to memorize it.
"I had an idea," he says, just like he did that night weeks ago.
"That never ends well," you joke weakly, playing along.
The shadow of a smile briefly crosses his lips before disappearing almost as quickly as it came.
"No," he says, slowly shaking his head. "This time it's different."
His thumb absentmindedly brushes along the line of your jaw in slow caresses that send butterflies fluttering through your stomach.
Dลma's gaze slowly drops to your lips.
"You're very beautiful," he repeats, this time in a quiet voice.
"You already said that," your lips begin to tremble beneath Dลma's attention.
"It's not enough, darling."
His lips find yours with an almost reverent slowness, as though even in that final moment Dลma is still wondering why he feels the need to do it. You've kissed Dลma far too many times to be surprised by a gesture like this.
You know the coldness of his lips, the faint sweet scent that always seems to linger around him, and the carefree way he leans down whenever he feels like stealing a kiss from you.
But this kiss isn't like any of the others.
It's not one of those absentminded kisses while he calls you "darling" with that insolent smile, it isn't one of those fleeting kisses he shares with you before disappearing among the trees as effortlessly as he arrived, nor is he trying to make you react or see what expression you'll make afterward.
Dลma lingers against your lips for a moment that seems to stretch far longer than it should, motionless at first, as though that simple contact alone is enough to quiet every thought that's been stirring inside him for weeks. Then he deepens the kiss.
His thumb strokes your cheek while his lips move against yours with a gentleness that slowly unties the knot that had been tightening around your chest.
Your fingers end up clutching the collar of his haori, while Dลma's leave your cheek to carefully slide down to your waist. His touch is still cold, but it no longer startles you.
His mouth parts yours as his tongue slips inside, turning the kiss into a scorching one that draws a soft moan from your lips. With insulting ease, as though you weigh absolutely nothing, he lifts you off the ground. The movement is so smooth that you barely have time to let out a small gasp before finding yourself sitting on the shrine's wooden railing.
He immediately steps between your legs to keep you from losing your balance.
Dลma tilts his head and finds your lips again and again, like a thirsty man incapable of pulling away from the only source that can quench his thirst.
When you're finally running out of air, you're the one who breaks the kiss just enough to take a shaky breath.
Dลma remains in front of you, still far too close, one hand resting on your waist while the other is still caressing your cheek, as though he'd forgotten to pull it away.
His white hair, always immaculate, has become slightly tousled from the wind and from your own fingers, which are still gripping the collar of his haori. A few loose strands fall across his forehead, casting soft shadows that soften his features.
His rainbow eyes are just as beautiful beneath the moonlight, but now they seem darker, deeper, like the surface of a lake after someone has thrown a stone into it and the last ripples are beginning to fade.
Dลma's lips are slightly parted, faintly flushed after your long kissing session.
He looks so beautiful that it steals your breath away.
"I think I was wrong," Dลma says, his voice rough enough to send a shiver down your spine.
"About what?" you murmur, still dazed from the kisses.
"I thought I was learning how people in love behave," his hand slowly leaves your cheek to find yours. "But it's been a long time since I needed to watch other couples."
Your heart skips a beat. "Dลmaโฆ"
"I don't watch what they do anymore, it's boring." His eyes return to yours. "All I think about is wanting to do those things with you."
Tears blur your vision as all the weight that's been building on your chest for weeks suddenly disappears.
Dลma tilts his head in confusion. "Are you crying?"
A shaky laugh escapes you through your tears.
"You're an idiotโฆ" you murmur so affectionately that the words lose any intention of sounding like a reproach.
Before he can ask why, you close the little distance still separating the two of you and bury your face against his chest, wrapping your arms tightly around him. Dลma goes completely still, surprised, before cautiously wrapping his arms around you in return.
"Ah," slips from Dลma's lips. "This isโฆ interesting."
His chin slowly comes to rest on top of your head, and you let out a small sound of confusion.
"I used to think it was silly that you smiled whenever I did things like this," he says, his eyes remaining fixed on the darkness surrounding the shrine. "Now I'm the one doing it."
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๐น๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฒ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐: ๐ฏ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐
M a s t e r l i s t โฟ A O 3 p r o f i l e
Pairings: Kyojurล x reader
Word count: 3.0k
Warnings: none.
Tags: tooth-rotting fluff โcaretakingโ hurt/comfort
โคท A fever leaves Kyojurล defenseless, and in his haze, he reveals the feelings he's kept hidden for far too long.
The first sign that something is wrong with Rengoku Kyojurล is that he's trying to convince you he's perfectly fine.
That might sound strange as a warning sign because Kyojurล has a habit of saying he's fine even when he clearly isn't. It's one of the things that frustrates you the most about him and, at the same time, one of the things you admire the most.
Kyojurล is the kind of person who smiles after coming back from an exhausting mission, who congratulates everyone else before acknowledging his own injuries, and who genuinely seems to believe that as long as the people around him are safe, any discomfort he feels simply doesn't matter.
His expression almost never changes, and that's exactly why it's so difficult to tell when something is actually wrong.
The mission had lasted much longer than expected. What had seemed like nothing more than a lone demon hiding near a small village turned out to be far more complicated, forcing your entire team to spend hours in the rain tracking its movements and fighting through a forest where visibility was practically nonexistent. None of you had suffered any serious injuries, but the exhaustion and cold were obvious on every Corps member returning alongside you.
"Excellent work!" Kyojurล announces the moment you step through the entrance to the estate, with an energy that seems impossible after an entire night spent on a mission. "The villagers are safe, and the demon has been defeated! It was a successful mission!"
Several heads turn toward him because of the volume of his voice, although no one actually looks surprised. That's simply how Kyojurล is.
You watch him quietly for a few seconds.
His uniform is still soaked from the rain, a few strands of hair have fallen across his face, and a small cut on his cheek still hasn't been cleaned. You also notice a stain of dried blood near his shoulder, though judging by the way he's moving, you already know he'll probably try to convince you it's nothing important.
"You're bleeding," you murmur with a slight frown, taking a few steps toward him.
"It's only a scratch!" His smile never fades.
"That's what you said last time," you sigh, slightly irritated, but gently brush your fingertips over the cut on his cheek with concern.
"And it was only a scratch," he says, and you try not to feel disappointed when Kyojurล pulls away from your touch.
"That scratch kept you from moving your arm for two days."
Kyojurล stays silent for a second.
"A slightly inconvenient scratch."
You can't help sighing. That's exactly the problem with him. As good as he is at taking care of everyone else, when it comes to himself, he seems completely incapable of accepting that he needs someone to take care of him too.
"You should let Kochล-san take a look at that."
"I'm perfectly fine," he insists.
You stare at him in silence, and Kyojurล returns your gaze in a way that tells you he has no intention of changing his mind.
Neither of you says anything for a few seconds until his expression softens just a little, and his smile becomes gentler.
"You worry too much," he murmurs, but you're close enough to hear him perfectly.
Your breath catches. He doesn't sound like he's complaining, it feels more like an observation, but even the slightest hint that Kyojurล might suspect your feelings terrifies you.
You open your mouth to answer, but before you can, Kyojurล turns toward the inside of the estate.
"I'll go clean up and get some rest."
You raise an eyebrow. "Really?"
"Of course!" he nods.
"Without training."
The silence that follows makes you sigh.
"Rengoku-san."
Kyojurล looks away, and you narrow your eyes at him suspiciously.
"Fine," he finally answers. "I'll get some rest."
Before you can say anything else, he says goodbye and heads inside the estate, leaving you with the strange feeling that something about him wasn't quite right.
You find out what happened a few hours later.
You're in your room. The rain had soaked your uniform down to the last thread, and simply taking it off draws a relieved sigh from your lips. You wrap a towel around your hair while leaving your damp clothes by the door and, for the first time since the mission ended, you feel the weight of exhaustion settling onto your shoulders.
It had been four long days, and if everything went well, you'd be able to rest until the next morning.
You're finishing drying your hair when someone knocks softly on the door.
It's not an impatient knock, just a couple of careful taps, almost shy.
"Come in," you say, setting the towel aside.
It isn't loud or insistent, only two cautious knocks that barely break the silence of the estate. You frown slightly as you drape the towel over your shoulders and walk over to open the door.
When you slide it open, you find Senjurล standing there. His hands are clasped together in front of him, and although he tries to smile with his usual politeness, you immediately notice the concern he can't quite hide. His eyes drift to the floor for a moment before meeting yours again.
"Senjurล-kun?"
He gives you a small bow before stepping inside.
"I'm sorry for coming this late."
"You never have to apologize for that." You step aside to give him room, though he gently shakes his head, making it clear he doesn't plan to stay. "Did something happen?"
The hesitation that crosses his face is enough to make the knot of unease you've carried since the mission settle back into your chest.
"It's my brother."
Your expression changes instantly. "What happened to him?"
Senjurล lets out a slow sigh, as though he'd spent several minutes trying to figure out the best way to explain it without making it sound worse than it was.
"When he came back from the mission, he insisted he was just tired. He changed his clothes and said he was going to rest for a while, so I thought sleeping would do him goodโฆ" He lowers his gaze for a few seconds, embarrassed that he hadn't insisted more. "But a little while ago I brought him dinner, and the tray was exactly where I'd left it. He hadn't touched any of it."
A bad feeling settles in your stomach before he even continues.
"I went in to wake him andโฆ he had a really high fever. He tried to sit up to convince me he was perfectly fine, but he barely managed to sit before he got dizzy. He keeps saying it's only a little exhaustion and that he'll be back to normal tomorrow, butโฆ" He slowly shakes his head. "I don't think I've ever seen him like this."
You press your lips into a thin line.
Kyojurล had spent four days barely resting, fighting through constant rain, enduring the cold, and staying soaked to the bone. Anyone else would've admitted they needed to stop long before this, but he'd spent his entire life ignoring anything that only affected his own body.
You're so tired of that.
"Has Kochล-san come yet?"
"I already sent someone to get her." Senjurล nods immediately. "But she's treating several Demon Slayers who came back injured from another mission, and she said it'll take a while. Soโฆ" His fingers tighten nervously around the fabric of his uniform before he looks back up at you. "I thought maybe you'd want to come in the meantime."
The way he says it makes something tighten painfully inside your chest.
"Let's go." You give him a small smile.
The relief on Senjurล's face is so obvious that he tries to hide it by straightening his back and regaining his composure.
The two of you walk through the hallways in silence. The estate is much quieter at this hour, and the sound of rain against the roof accompanies your footsteps.
When Senjurล slides the door open, the faint scent of medicinal herbs mixed with the warmth of the room greets you. The brazier still burns quietly in one corner, and Kyojurล is resting on the futon, propped up against several cushions. The moment he hears the door, he immediately lifts his head, as though he'd been waiting for someone to come in.
"Senjurล!" he exclaims with a bright smile, though his voice is slightly hoarse. "I told you there was no need to worry so much. I just need a little rest, and tomorrow I'll be able to train like normal."
The sentence loses every bit of credibility the moment your eyes settle on him.
His cheeks are flushed a deep shade of red, a few strands of hair cling to his forehead, damp with sweat, and even from the doorway you can see the unusual shine in his eyes. He breathes a little heavily, as though even talking requires more effort than he's willing to admit.
When he sees you, his smile seems to widen even more as you cross the room without taking your eyes off him.
"You told me you were fine," you scold him.
"I am."
You stop in front of the futon and, without asking permission, press your palm against his forehead. His temperature is enough to make you frown immediately.
"Kyojurล."
"Yes?"
"You're burning up," you snap, pulling your hand away as if you'd burned yourself.
He seems to consider your words for a moment before answering calmly.
"I suppose I'm a little warm."
Senjurล watches the exchange in silence, clearly torn between concern and the relief of having you there so he doesn't have to deal with his brother alone.
"I got him some water a little while ago," he explains quietly. "And I managed to get him to drink a little, but he wouldn't eat dinner."
"I wasn't very hungry," Kyojurล answers before you can say anything.
"You haven't eaten since this morning," Senjurล replies firmly.
Kyojurล looks at his brother, who looks away for a second as though he'd just been caught doing something mischievous.
"Senjurล-kun," you call, and he startles, looking at you with wide eyes. "Thank you for coming to get me."
He lowers his head modestly. "It was nothing."
"It wasn't." You give him a small smile. "Now go get some rest. It's late, and you've spent long enough worrying about him."
Senjurล hesitates. "Butโฆ"
"I'll stay with Rengoku-san until Kochล-san gets here."
He glances at his brother, still clearly unsure.
"Will you be okay?"
"Of course!" Kyojurล answers. "You have nothing to worry about, Senjurล. Get some rest."
Senjurล shakes his head in resignation before saying goodbye and quietly sliding the door shut behind him. His footsteps gradually fade down the hallway until they disappear completely, leaving behind a comfortable silence broken only by the steady rain on the roof and the soft crackling of the brazier.
Now that Senjurล is gone and the room has fallen quiet again, it's much more obvious how exhausted he really is. He's no longer sitting quite as straight as usual, and although he's still smiling, it looks like nothing more than habit. Even breathing takes effort, something he tries to hide every time he notices you watching him too closely.
"What?" His voice pulls you from your thoughts.
"Nothing."
Kyojurล tilts his head slightly, clearly unconvinced.
"You were staring at me."
"Because you looked like you were about to pass out," you mutter, sitting down beside him, closer than before.
Kyojurล smiles with barely noticeable resignation.
"I'll admit my body's not cooperating very well todayโฆ" He lets out a quiet laugh before continuing. "But I won't pass out that easily."
Without answering, you place your palm against his forehead again.
The fever hasn't gone down at all. If anything, it's gotten worse.
You frown as you pull your hand away and dampen the cloth Senjurล had prepared earlier. After wringing it out carefully, you place it back across Kyojurล's forehead, brushing a few sweat-damp strands of hair away from his skin.
He closes his eyes the moment the cool cloth touches him.
Kyojurล stays silent for several minutes. You think he's finally fallen asleep because his breathing slowly evens out, and the slight frown caused by his discomfort gradually fades away.
"Motherโฆ" His voice is barely above a whisper, and you immediately lift your head.
He doesn't seem aware that you're there. His eyes remain closed, and his breathing stays slow.
"Senjurล is growing up so much." A small smile appears on his lips. "He's a good boyโฆ much better than I was at his age."
His voice trails off again for a few seconds.
"I want him to laugh more." His lips curl into the faintest smile. "He looks so much like Mother when he smiles."
Your eyes drift down to his hands resting on the blanket. They're completely relaxed, and he doesn't even seem to realize he's still talking.
"Fatherโฆ" His smile disappears just as gently as it appeared. "I hope someday he'll look at us again."
You know Kyojurล well enough to know he'd never say something like that while fully conscious. He'd never speak about his father with resentment or sadness in front of someone else. He accepts everything with admirable calm, even the things that still clearly hurt him.
Your hand finds his almost without thinking. His fingers twitch at the contact before gently curling around yours.
"Kyojurลโฆ" you whisper, even though you know he probably can't hear you.
"I'm always too late to protect everyone."
You blink in confusion.
"If I'd run just a little fasterโฆ" His breathing becomes slightly uneven. "If I'd been strongerโฆ"
"Don't cry," you whisper so quietly you can barely hear yourself. "As long as I'm here, you won't have to carry everything on your own."
You tighten your grip around his hand. You don't expect an answer. In fact, you're convinced he didn't hear you, but Kyojurล smiles.
"It's easier with you." He barely opens his eyes. "I can rest a little."
His gaze remains unfocused somewhere between the ceiling and your shoulders, clouded by exhaustion and fever.
"You're always watching me." Another faint smile appears on his face. "You always know when something hurts, and you scold me."
You huff in annoyance, rolling your eyes, and he laughs weakly.
"I like it when you do."
Your heart skips a beat before racing wildly, and you tighten your fingers around his hand while Kyojurล keeps talking as though he hasn't said anything important.
"When I come back from a missionโฆ" His breathing slowly steadies again. "You're the first person I look for."
Heat rushes to your cheeks, leaving you completely defenseless, while a sweet ache settles beneath your ribs.
For so long, you'd kept those feelings buried in silence, convinced they had to stay hidden, and now only a few honest words are enough to tear down every wall you'd built around them.
"If I see youโฆ" He pauses for so long you think he's fallen asleep. "Then I know everything turned out alright."
He smiles again, his eyes still half closed. You can't stop yourself from smiling through the tightness growing in your throat as you gently stroke the back of his hand.
"So beautifulโฆ" he murmurs with absentminded tenderness that almost sounds as though he's speaking to a memory. "You've always been so beautiful."
Kyojurล shifts slightly on the futon, his fingers tightening around yours just a little more.
You want to answer. You want to tell him that you look for him too every time he comes back, that every mission feels like an endless wait, and that you've never stopped praying to see him smile again, but your mind goes completely blank.
"Don't go," he murmurs. His eyelids slowly flutter open, and although the fever still clouds his eyes, this time he manages to focus on yours.
"I'm not going anywhere," you answer almost without thinking, leaning down slightly so he can hear you. "I'm staying right here."
The tension in his shoulders seems to melt away instantly.
Before you sits the man who always seems invincible, brought low by something as simple as a fever, the same man who never allows anyone to see his own weaknesses and who has now, without realizing it, laid the most vulnerable part of himself completely bare.
You don't know whether the fever is still making him ramble or whether he's finally regained enough clarity to understand who you are and where he is. All you know is that he's looking at you with such calm, such warmth, that it's impossible to hold his gaze for very long.
You lift your hand to brush another strand of hair away from his forehead, and Kyojurล closes his eyes, leaning ever so slightly into your touch.
You lean over him very slowly. You could stop. It's not too late. Yet when your eyes meet his once more, you find the same familiar warmth that always takes your breath away.
You close the last bit of distance between you and brush your lips against his in a brief, gentle kiss, far too nervous to dare anything more. As you begin to pull away, a warm hand slowly rises to cup your cheek.
You look up, and Kyojurล is still watching you. The confusion that clouded his eyes only minutes ago is gone.
"Noโฆ" he murmurs with a small, affectionate smile. "Don't pull away just yet."
Before you can react, he closes the remaining distance himself.
Neither of you is in any hurry. His lips move against yours with a tenderness that almost hurts, warm despite the fever consuming the rest of his body. His breath mingles with yours while his thumb continues to stroke your cheek gently, tracing along your cheekbone before coming to rest there as though he wants to memorize the shape of your face.
"I thoughtโฆ" Kyojurล says in a voice so quiet it's almost swallowed by the sound of the rain. "I thought I was dreaming."
A nervous laugh slips from your lips. "I'm starting to think so too."
The door slides open at that exact moment.
"Oh, my. Am I interrupting something?"
Both of you immediately turn your heads in surprise.
Shinobu stands in the doorway with a small medicine box in her hands. For a second she silently takes in the scene, her eyes moving from Kyojurล to you and back to Kyojurล before an amused smile curls across her lips.
"I'm relieved to see Rengoku-san still has enough energy for other activities." The smile Shinobu sends you makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.
You're definitely going to be the Corps' favorite gossip for a very long time.
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Spoilers for The warmest machine | Series: Circuit Hearts | Chapter 1 | Rated T | Rengoku Kyojurล x reader
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On the afternoons when you work from the couch, plates of sliced fruit start appearing beside your laptop. Apples, peeled tangerines, the occasional pear cut into perfect pieces. They never show up at lunchtime, but a little afterward, right when you realize you've been writing for far too long without getting up.
"Thanks," you say automatically, your eyes still fixed on your laptop screen.
"You haven't eaten," Kyojurล says suddenly. "Not today, not yesterday, and not the day before either."
It doesn't sound like a scolding, but somehow it still makes you feel guilty.
"Uh... Yeah, I usually forget to eat..." you mumble, finally setting your laptop aside and picking up the plate of fruit.
You expect him to simply nod or change the subject, but Kyojuro keeps looking at you for a few more seconds.
"That's not good. It isn't efficient for your body to function for that many hours without enough energy."
You blink and look up at him.
"Your concentration decreases, your fatigue increases, and even if you get used to that feeling, it doesn't mean it's an appropriate condition!"
You look at him in silence, the fruit still in your hands.
There's something strangely endearing about hearing him talk about you as if he's analyzing a system that needs maintenance, even though the intention behind his words is much simpler.
"Are you telling me I should actually listen to my own body?"
Kyojurล nods immediately, full of enthusiasm.
"Of course you should!"
The answer comes with so much conviction that you can't help letting out a small laugh.
"That sounds like something a doctor would say," you tilt your head slightly, still smiling.
"Doctors say important things."
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M a s t e r l i s t โฟ A O 3 p r o f i l e
Pairings: male Hashira x reader โLess Tokito Muichiro
Word count: 4.7k
Warnings: none.
Tags: getting togetherโ the Hashira are whipped for youโ friends to lovers
Tomioka Giyuu
The mission has been over for a while now, but neither of you seems to be in any hurry to head back.
The sound of the river fills the silence as you rest on some rocks, letting the exhaustion slowly leave your bodies. The air is cool, and the breeze gently stirs the leaves in the trees, creating a kind of peace that's hard to find after a battle.
You sigh without taking your eyes off the water. It keeps flowing calmly, carrying away tiny leaves that disappear downstream, and for a moment you wish sorting through your thoughts were as simple as letting them drift away.
"We're finally done..."
Giyuu gives a small nod. "Yeah."
A faint smile forms on your lips. With anyone else, this silence would eventually become awkward, but with him it never does. It's strange. Giyuu doesn't need to fill every moment with words to make you feel like you're not alone, and maybe that's why you finally find the courage to ask the question that's been on your mind for quite a while.
"Can I ask you something?"
He turns his head slightly toward you.
"Of course."
You lower your gaze to the small pebble you're holding between your fingers and absentmindedly roll it back and forth. You're not quite sure how to bring it up, so you take the long way around, hoping the words will come on their own.
"Have you ever felt like you've made a mistake... even though you can't regret it?"
Giyuu stays quiet for a few seconds before answering.
"Maybe." His answer comes without trying to figure out what you're implying. That makes it a little easier to breathe. You nod to yourself and let out a quiet laugh, more nervous than amused. "I think that's happened to me too."
With a small flick of your wrist, you throw the stone into the river. You watch it skip once before sinking, unable to take your eyes off the water as you gather enough courage to keep going.
"I fell in love with someone."
You don't get any immediate reaction.
When you finally dare to glance at him, Giyuu is still watching the river with the same calm expression as always. He doesn't look surprised, curious, or uncomfortable, he simply waits for you to finish speaking, as if he understands that you still haven't said everything you want to say.
That gives you the courage to continue.
"I tried to convince myself it was a bad idea. I thought that if I ignored how I felt for long enough, it'd disappear on its own. After all, this isn't the kind of job where I can afford to grow attached to people."
You lower your gaze to your hands, keeping yourself busy playing with your fingers to avoid looking at him directly.
"But it didn't work."
The sound of the water fills the silence between you again. A few seconds pass before Giyuu speaks.
"Who is it?"
The question is so simple that the answer leaves your lips before you can think twice.
"You."
The air seems to vanish in an instant. You hear Giyuu take a deep breath before the sound of your own heartbeat drowns out everything else. It's pounding so hard you can almost feel it in your throat, and it doesn't even take a second for you to realize what you've just done.
You've just confessed to him.
Your lips remain slightly parted as you desperately search for some way to fix the situation, but there isn't one. The harder you try to come up with an explanation, the more you realize there isn't one. You can't pretend you were talking about someone else, and you can't act like it was a joke.
You lower your gaze immediately, unable to bear the thought of meeting his eyes.
"Forget it." A nervous laugh slips past your lips. "I don't know what came over me."
You stand up, intending to leave before you embarrass yourself any further, but you don't even get the chance to take a step.
"Wait." His voice sounds more hurried than usual.
When you look back at him, Giyuu is already on his feet.
"I don't want to forget it." He lowers his gaze for a few seconds before meeting your eyes again. "I thought... I'd never have to face this."
You frown slightly. "What do you mean?"
Giyuu stays silent for a few more seconds.
"I mean... I fell in love with you too."
Your breath catches for a moment, and Giyuu looks away with a faint blush on his cheeks. You slowly step closer until the sleeve of your haori brushes against his.
"I thought I'd never have the courage to say it," he finishes, closing his eyes.
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Shinazugawa Sanemi
The mission has been over for quite a while now, but Sanemi seems completely incapable of sitting still. The moment you return to headquarters, he heads straight for the training yard, completely ignoring the wounds that are still open beneath his bandages.
You watch him drive blow after blow into one of the wooden training posts, as if exhaustion simply doesn't exist for him. Every movement stains the bandages around his side with a little more blood, and the longer you watch him, the harder it becomes to resist the urge to stop him.
"Are you planning on keeping this up much longer?" you finally ask.
Sanemi doesn't even stop hitting the post.
"Does it bother you?"
You let out a tired sigh. Of course it bothers you. He's spent the entire mission throwing himself headfirst at demons without caring about taking a single hit, and even now he seems convinced that making it out alive means nothing happened.
You press your lips together before stepping a little closer, folding your arms as you wait for him to come to his senses for once.
"What bothers me is watching you end up half dead and still acting like you're invincible."
He lets out a quiet scoff through his nose and finally lowers his sword. He turns toward you with that defiant expression that always seems glued to his face, absentmindedly wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand.
"But I'm still alive."
"Out of pure luck," you reply with a frown.
"No, because I know what I'm doing." His answer comes with such confidence that you can feel your patience slowly slipping away.
You've spent far too long watching him gamble with his life without thinking about the consequences, far too long swallowing your fear every time he disappears from your sight during a mission. He always makes it back... but one day he might not.
That possibility has been living in your mind for weeks, following you even when you try to sleep.
"Do you know what your problem is?" you murmur, unable to take your eyes off him. "You never think about the people left behind watching you do all these stupid things."
Sanemi raises an eyebrow, clearly confused by your comment. "And why should I?"
His answer makes you let out a humorless laugh. You shake your head several times, trying to convince yourself there's no point arguing with him anymore. He never listens, he never changes his mind, it's like talking to a brick wall.
"Forget it," you mutter wearily. That's the effect Sanemi's stubbornness has on you.
You start walking away, convinced the conversation is over, but Sanemi's voice reaches you again only a few seconds later.
"Quit worrying about stupid things. I don't want your concern."
You close your eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. You know that if you answer now, you'll probably end up saying something you'll regret for the rest of your life.
But when you turn back toward him, he's still looking at you with that same defiant expression, and something inside you finally snaps.
"Of course I'm worried!" you exclaim, feeling every bit of frustration that's built up over months come pouring out all at once. "You don't get it at all! How am I supposed to stop when I'm in love with you?"
Silence falls over the training yard with almost painful weight.
You swallow hard. Shit. That just slipped out.
Sanemi stares at you as if you've just punched him square in the face. His expression stays completely frozen for several seconds, so much so that you start wondering if he even heard you. And yet, the slight tremble in his eyes and the way his grip tightens around the hilt of his sword make it obvious that he did.
Far more obvious than either of you would've liked.
You're the first to look away.
"I don't know why I said that. Forget it. Just stop acting like an idiot around me," you mutter, walking away before your own impulsiveness sends you into a full panic.
"Hey."
Sanemi's voice makes you stop.
He's still standing exactly where he was, one hand resting on the back of his neck and the other hanging at his side. He avoids looking directly at you, something completely unlike him, as he lets out a long sigh through his nose.
"That's got to be the dumbest confession I've ever heard."
Your cheeks burn even hotter. "I said forget it!"
"Will you let me talk?" he snaps irritably, and you immediately fall silent. "Better."
Sanemi lowers his head for a few seconds, clearly uncomfortable.
"I've spent months trying to convince myself it was better to keep my distance from you." He pauses, clicking his tongue in annoyance at himself. "Then you go and say something like that out of nowhere."
You can't help letting out a small nervous laugh.
"Believe me, that wasn't my intention," you say, rolling your eyes.
Without giving it much thought, he closes the distance between you until he's standing right in front of you. For a few seconds, neither of you does anything. You simply look at each other, both still far too embarrassed to know who should make the first move.
"Now that you've said it..." With an awkward movement, he reaches for your hand and intertwines his fingers with yours. "I guess it's my turn to admit that I'm so fucking in love with you."
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Uzui Tengen
The mission has been surprisingly easy. So easy, in fact, that the walk back is filled with casual conversations and the occasional exaggerated comment from Tengen about how utterly unimpressive that demon had been.
You watch him walk a few steps ahead of you with his hands behind his head, completely relaxed, as if he hadn't just spent hours fighting. Every now and then he turns around to tell you some ridiculous story or make you laugh with one of his remarks, and you can't help wondering how it's possible for someone to have so much energy even after a mission.
"You've been awfully quiet today," Tengen says, changing the subject when he notices you aren't paying attention to whatever he was talking about.
You look up at him.
"I'm tired."
"No, you're not." He smiles.
You frown slightly, offended. "What do you mean, I'm not?"
"When you're tired, you don't frown that much. You do that when you're overthinking." He gives you a light tap between your eyebrows, and you click your tongue.
You hate to admit it, but he knows you far too well.
You lower your gaze to the path, hoping he'll change the subject. You've spent the entire mission trying to ignore the little knot in your chest that tightens every time he gets too close, every time he smiles, or every time he unconsciously seeks out your company as naturally as breathing.
Especially because you know perfectly well those little gestures don't mean anything to him.
"What are you thinking about?" His question pulls you out of your thoughts. "And don't tell me 'nothing.' That answer's never interesting."
A small laugh slips from your lips. "You're such an idiot."
"And incredibly handsome." He wiggles his eyebrows several times, and you ignore the way your cheeks grow slightly warm.
"That too," you admit with a small smile.
Tengen places a hand over his chest in mock pride.
"Thank you. I like honest people."
You shake your head again, laughing. Talking to him is always far too easy, so much so that you end up forgetting to think before you speak.
"Although that also makes it harder to forget that I'm in love with you."
You keep walking for another couple of steps before realizing Tengen is no longer beside you.
He's standing perfectly still in the middle of the path, staring at you with an expression completely different from the one he had only moments ago. The teasing smile is gone, and he seems to have no idea what to say.
It takes you a few seconds to realize why, and your heart nearly stops.
"Wait, that!" Heat instantly rushes to your cheeks as your eyes go wide. "I wasn't supposed to tell you that!"
You bury your face in both hands, completely mortified.
Your embarrassment makes you start talking way too fast, your words tumbling over each other as you desperately search for an explanation that sounds even remotely believable.
"It just slipped out, I'm tired, I wasn't thinking clearly... I..."
Your voice trails off on its own. You don't even believe your own excuses. Tengen stays silent, and that only makes you even more nervous.
"Aren't you going to say something?"
He blinks a couple of times before letting out a quiet laugh through his nose.
"Wow... I wasn't expecting that." He brings a hand to his chin, as if he's carefully analyzing the situation. "I had noticed."
You lift your head so quickly it almost hurts. "What?"
A crooked smile slowly returns to his lips.
"Not that you were in love with me," he says slowly. "But I had noticed you'd been acting... differently for weeks."
Your cheeks burn even hotter. You hadn't thought you'd been that obvious. You're terrible at hiding things and even worse at lying.
"You'd always look for me the moment we finished a mission, you'd somehow end up walking beside me without even realizing it, and whenever one of my wives hugged me, you'd make the funniest face," he lists calmly while you grimace awkwardly at having yourself exposed like that.
"Well..." you mumble, covering part of your face with your hands again. "Now that I've completely embarrassed myself... I think I'm going to leave."
"I don't want you walking away thinking you're the only one who's been hiding something for a long time."
He steps in front of you with a smile far gentler than usual, so different from the one he shows the rest of the world that, for a moment, you barely recognize him.
"I would've preferred a confession that was a little more... extravagant." He raises a hand and, with surprisingly gentle care, brushes a loose strand of hair away from your face. "But I guess yours was pretty memorable too."
Your heart starts racing all over again.
"Does that mean...?"
Tengen's smile grows.
"It means I fell in love with you quite a long time ago."
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Himejima Gyomei
The mission ended before sunset, so the two of you decided to make a brief stop before returning to headquarters. Near the path stands a small abandoned temple where the whisper of the wind barely manages to break the silence. After spending the entire day fighting, the place offers a kind of peace that's hard to find anywhere else.
Gyomei sits on the stone steps with his hands folded in front of him, quietly reciting a prayer. You decide to sit beside him without saying a word, simply enjoying the sense of calm that always seems to surround him.
No matter how difficult the mission has been, somehow, just being close to him makes the weight on your shoulders slowly fade away.
"Are you feeling better?" he asks when he finishes praying.
You look up at him and nod with a small smile.
"Yeah. I just needed to rest for a while."
Gyomei smiles as well. "I'm glad you've had the chance to regain your strength. After such a demanding mission, the body needs rest too."
The two of you spend a few minutes looking out over the temple courtyard as the breeze gently stirs the branches overhead, until you let out a long sigh without even realizing it.
"Is something wrong?" he asks, leaning slightly toward you.
You shake your head almost instinctively.
"No... Well..."
You absentmindedly fiddle with a small leaf that has fallen onto the stone step. You've spent far too long trying to convince yourself that what you feel will disappear with time, but every mission you share, every quiet conversation, and every small act of kindness has done exactly the opposite.
"I was just thinking that... everything feels so much easier when I'm with you."
Gyomei turns his face slightly toward you, giving you his full attention.
"What do you mean?"
You lower your gaze, unable to answer right away.
"When I'm with you, I feel like I can stop worrying for a while. It's like... I don't have to carry everything on my own."
He listens to every word without interrupting you.
"If my company can ease even a small part of the burden you carry on your shoulders... then I'm grateful for that."
A smile appears on your lips.
"You're so kind..." you whisper, staring down at the ground. "I guess falling in love with someone like you was inevitable."
Gyomei goes completely still.
Your smile slowly fades, and then you gasp in surprise as you quickly stand up. You'd felt so comfortable that you couldn't stop yourself from opening up, even about the secret you'd been guarding more fiercely than anything else.
Gyomei's hands, which had been resting together on his lap until then, tense ever so slightly.
"...Could you repeat what you just said?"
"I didn't mean to say that..." you reply, wiping your sweaty hands against your haori.
"You have no reason to be ashamed." Gyomei rises to his feet as well and slowly walks toward you. "But I also don't wish to force you to repeat words you weren't ready to say."
His words manage to calm some of the nerves racing through your body, though not your embarrassment. You keep your eyes fixed on the ground, unable to gather enough courage to look at him. Your heart is pounding so hard you're convinced even he can hear it.
"It was an accident..." you murmur, barely above a whisper. "I fell in love with you before I even realized it had happened."
Gyomei simply gives you the time you need to gather your thoughts, never rushing you. The breeze stirs the leaves once more, and for a few moments, the only sound is the soft clink of the prayer beads as they slowly slide through his fingers.
"I've prayed many times," he finally confesses in his calm, steady voice. "Not for those feelings to disappear... but for my heart not to mistake affection for the desire to protect you."
You slowly lift your head. Gyomei keeps his gaze lowered, as though those words are just as difficult for him to say.
"I believed remaining silent was the right thing to do. My duty has always come before my own desires, and I never wanted to place the weight of feelings upon you that you might not have shared."
A lump forms in your throat. You'd never imagined he'd been struggling with the very same thing.
"So...?" you whisper hopefully.
Gyomei nods with a slight inclination of his head before you've even finished the question. He takes one small step toward you and, with almost reverent gentleness, takes one of your hands between both of his.
"If you'll allow me," he says with a tenderness that makes your chest ache, "I'd like to take care of your heart the same way you've been taking care of mine all this time."
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Iguro Obanai
The walk back is quiet, almost too quiet.
The mission has only been over for a few minutes, and even though exhaustion weighs heavily on both of you, neither of you seems willing to break the silence. The only sounds are the crunch of leaves beneath your feet and Kaburamaru's soft hissing as he rests coiled around Obanai's shoulders like always.
You've been stealing glances at the bandage wrapped around his arm for quite a while now. You can't stop thinking about the moment he stepped between you and the demon.
"You shouldn't have done that."
Obanai keeps walking for a few more steps before answering.
"Done what?" he asks in a bored tone.
You grimace. "Stepping in front of me."
He shifts his gaze back to the path and answers almost immediately.
"It was the fastest and most effective option."
You knew that was exactly what he'd say, but hearing him say it out loud only irritates you even more. You press your lips together, trying to let the subject go, but it's impossible.
If that attack had been only a few inches off... You shake your head. You don't even want to imagine how that mission would've ended.
"That's not the point."
Obanai finally stops and turns to face you completely, patiently waiting for you to continue.
You lower your gaze for a few seconds, searching for a way to explain something you've been keeping to yourself for far too long.
"I don't like seeing you do things like that," you murmur, embarrassed to let him see your more vulnerable side.
His expression barely changes.
"I've survived worse."
"I know."
"Then stop worrying."
He says it so simply that your blood starts to boil.
A humorless laugh slips from your lips.
"And how exactly am I supposed to do that?"
Obanai raises an eyebrow slightly.
"I don't know. Figure it out yourself."
You let out a frustrated sigh. For months you've been trying to convince yourself that you could keep hiding your feelings, but every mission makes it a little harder. On top of that, he talks to you in that way that never fails to get under your skin. You don't understand how it's even possible that you've fallen in love with someone so unbelievably stubborn.
You let out another quiet huff and keep walking, convinced this conversation isn't going anywhere. But after only a couple of steps, you realize you can't hear Obanai following you anymore.
You frown slightly and turn on your heel, only to find him still standing perfectly still in the middle of the path.
Kaburamaru has lifted his head, and Obanai is looking at you with an expression you've never seen on his face before.
"Obanai?"
"Are you in love with me?"
The words leave both of your mouths at exactly the same time.
Your stomach drops, and you take a surprised step backward.
You blink several times, completely stunned, replaying the conversation in your head. No... you'd never said that. All you'd done was think about how frustrating he was and how ridiculous it was that you'd fallen in love with him.
The color drains from your face.
You hadn't thought it, you'd said it out loud.
You clamp a hand over your mouth as heat rushes to your cheeks all at once. Your heart starts pounding so hard you can almost feel it in your throat, and an awful knot settles in your stomach.
"No!" you cry, your lips trembling. "I don't like you, no, not at all. That was a mistake, I... I'm leaving!"
You turn around with the sole intention of running away before you can make the situation even worse, but you've barely managed to take a single step when a hand gently wraps around your wrist.
How did he get beside you so fast?
Obanai doesn't tighten his grip to keep you there. The light touch of his fingers is enough to stop you from taking another step.
"You said it without thinking." His voice is far too calm.
You stay with your back to him, far too embarrassed to turn around. You can feel your heart pounding against your chest so hard that you can barely breathe properly.
"Please..." you murmur, your voice barely audible. "Pretend you didn't hear any of that."
For months you'd been careful with every word, every glance, and every little gesture so Obanai would never suspect a thing. And now, just a couple of sentences spoken in a moment of frustration had brought all of that crashing down.
The hand around your wrist loosens slightly.
"I can't." His next words come after a long silence. "I've been waiting far too long to hear something like that."
You feel the air leave your lungs, and you slowly turn to look at him.
Obanai is still avoiding your eyes. The faint blush spreading across the tips of his ears contrasts with the calm expression on his face, though the slight tremble in his fingers gives away that he's every bit as nervous as you are.
"I thought..." He pauses briefly, searching for the right words. "I thought I'd never have a reason to believe my feelings could ever be returned."
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Rengoku Kyojuro
The sun is beginning to set as the two of you make your way back. After an especially long mission, everything feels surprisingly peaceful. Rengoku walks beside you with the same energy he always has, enthusiastically talking about how well you worked together and recalling moments from the battle with such an infectious smile that you end up laughing along with him.
You can't help thinking that this is one of the things you love most about Kyojuro. Even after facing a demon, he still finds reasons to smile.
"You were magnificent today!" he suddenly exclaims, turning toward you with an expression full of pride. "I'm convinced that every mission we share proves just how much you've grown as a swordswoman!"
An embarrassed laugh slips from your lips.
"Don't exaggerate," you murmur, giving him a light punch on the shoulder.
"I never exaggerate when I'm giving someone a compliment!"
He shakes his head with such confidence that you end up rolling your eyes with a laugh.
"You're impossible."
"Thank you!" His smile grows even wider.
You look at him for a few seconds, unable to stop yourself from smiling.
You don't understand how someone can be so optimistic all the time. Sometimes, just spending a few hours by his side is enough to make you forget every worry, and maybe that's why you've spent so long trying to convince yourself that what you feel can't possibly be love.
Because it would be far too complicated, because he deserves someone better, and because you know he'll most likely never see you that way.
"Is something wrong?" he asks when he notices you've gone quiet again.
"No... I was just thinking."
"About what?" Kyojuro tilts his head curiously.
You let out a soft sigh, a dreamy smile appearing on your lips.
"About how wonderful it is to be in love with someone like you."
The silence doesn't last long, but it's long enough for those words to start echoing over and over inside your head.
The air seems to get stuck in your lungs as your heart lurches so hard you almost lose your balance.
Your eyes fly open, and heat rushes to your cheeks so quickly that you can feel even your ears burning. You clamp a hand over your mouth, completely horrified, replaying the conversation in your mind again and again with the ridiculous hope that you imagined it.
"Wait!" you blurt out, throwing both hands up in front of you as if you could stop time itself. "That... that wasn't meant for you! Well... it was meant for you! No! I mean..."
The words come out so fast that not even you can make sense of them. You squeeze your eyes shut. You've never wanted to disappear so badly.
For months, you'd imagined a beautiful, peaceful confession after finally working up the courage to do it. You'd thought through every last detail, the words you'd use and the perfect moment.
And instead, you'd ended up confessing in the middle of a muddy road after answering a completely innocent question.
You weren't even sure you'd ever confess at all.
You remain frozen, unable to gather the courage to look at him. You expect anything, surprise, rejection, or even for him to walk away without saying a word, but the one thing you don't expect is for him to laugh.
You slowly open your eyes. Kyojuro is still looking at you, but he doesn't seem uncomfortable or confused. Quite the opposite. His smile has grown even wider, and his eyes are shining with such unmistakable excitement that you're completely caught off guard.
"That makes me incredibly happy!"
You blink several times. "Excuse me?"
"I've been waiting to hear those words for a long time!"
Your mind goes completely blank. You stare at him, unsure whether you heard him correctly or if your embarrassment has finally made you lose your senses.
Kyojuro lets out a laugh full of excitement before resting a hand on his hip.
"I'd been planning to confess my feelings once I found the right moment! I wanted to do it after inviting you to have a meal with me once we got back from the mission." He pauses briefly before smiling at you again with the same warmth that makes your heart skip a beat. "But it seems you ended up being much braver than I was."
"Were you... in love with me?" You feel your heart start racing all over again.
"Of course!" he says without the slightest hint of embarrassment. "I've been in love with you for quite a long time."
The sincerity in his voice makes all the tension you've been carrying melt away in an instant. There's no hesitation in his voice, no embarrassment, no attempt to hide how he feels.
"I'm truly happy that your feelings found the courage to leave your heart." Before you can answer, Kyojuro gently wraps your hands in both of his, wearing the brightest smile. "I promise I'll make you just as happy as you've made me today!"
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Iโm finally on AO3!
Iโve started a new collection called Circuit Hearts, an android x reader fic universe set in a future where androids are part of everyday life.
The idea is to create stories featuring different characters, each one focused on its own relationship while exploring themes like companionship, emotions, and the line between what is programmed and what can become something more.
The first fic will feature Rengoku Kyojuro as an android from Kasugai Industries, and Iโm really excited to start sharing this collection.
You can read it here.
Iโll also be accepting requests and ideas! If thereโs any character youโd like to see in this universe, or if youโd like a continuation of any of the fics once they start being released, feel free to leave your suggestions.
I canโt promise Iโll be able to write every idea, but Iโd love to read them and see which characters youโd like to imagine within Circuit Hearts.
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hello!!! i just wanna say that i absolutely LOVE your demon slayer fics. i'm methodically going through every single one in your masterlist and your characterization is just immaculate, especially for tomioka !!! i can't wait to read all the ones you've written and the ones you're gonna write <3
Ahh, thank you so much!! I'm so happy you're enjoying my fics. Thank you for taking the time to read them all and leave such a kind message ๐๐
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M a s t e r l i s t โฟ A O 3 p r o f i l e
Pairings: male Hashira x reader โLess Tokito Muichiro
Word count: 1.5k
Warnings: none.
Tags: domestic fluffโ accidental physical contact โ post-mission
Iguro Obanai
You wake up with a start, rubbing your sleepy eyes. That's when you realize you're comfortably resting against Obanai's shoulder.
"I'm so sorry!" you yelp in embarrassment, quickly pulling away.
"Keep your voice down," he mutters, looking away.
Kaburamaru isn't resting around his shoulders because you were taking up his usual spot. The snake slithers back up his arm and settles over his shoulders again the moment the space is free.
"Did I bother you?" you ask quietly.
"No. Now be quiet," he replies immediately.
That makes you freeze for a moment, and you nervously nibble on your bottom lip. Obanai glances at you from the corner of his eye before letting out a sigh.
"Stop overthinking."
"You could've woken me up... you know," you complain under your breath, frowning.
"I didn't want to," he says after a brief pause. "You looked tired."
A sudden warmth spreads through your chest, and a smile you can't control appears on your face. Your heart pounds against your ribs as you finally work up the courage to take his hand and intertwine your fingers with his.
You catch the faintest blush creeping across Obanai's ears, and you can feel the heat rising to your own cheeks.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
Tomioka Giyuu
You wake up before fully opening your eyes because you notice something feels off. You're curled up against something, you shift looking for a comfortable position and the surface you're leaning on moves as well.
"Sorry," a voice says immediately.
Your eyes fly open.
Giyuu is looking straight ahead, but his attention clearly isn't on the surroundings, it's on you.
"Giyuu! Oh, sorry..." you sit up stuttering. "I haven't slept much, have I?"
"No."
Giyuu's voice sounds tense and you narrow your eyes suspiciously.
"That doesn't sound very convincing."
Giyuu clears his throat and shifts in his seat.
"I didn't realize how much time had passed," he murmurs. "I didn't mean to wake you."
Your face instantly turns bright red and you lower your gaze to the floor, suddenly unable to look Giyuu in the eyes. You hear Giyuu exhale through his nose beside you, though it sounds more like a restrained laugh. You frown, you can't believe that it's him of all people who finds your embarrassment funny.
Even though he's so reserved, sometimes he's way too blunt about certain things, and he always catches you off guard.
You're sure Giyuu loves seeing you blush.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
Shinazugawa Sanemi
A sudden movement jolts you awake.
"Tch."
You donโt need to look to know who it is.
"What?" you mumble, sitting up.
"You fell asleep," Sanemi says, rolling his eyes.
"Yeah, I noticed," you say, raising an eyebrow.
You frown slightly. You had only fallen asleep on his shoulder, you donโt understand why heโs reacting like that.
"You couldโve moved," he snaps, crossing his arms.
"I was asleep," you growl, starting to get irritated with him.
Sanemi clicks his tongue.
"Itโs not safe to sleep like that."
"Weโre not in combat," you tilt your head, confused. "Why should I?"
"Youโre never fully out of it," he sighs, looking away.
Your mouth opens in surprise, now you understand that strange attitude. You close the distance between you and rest a hand on his arm, noticing Sanemi flinch, already about to throw a sharp comment, but when you rest your head on his shoulder again, he goes silent.
You smile to yourself. Youโre definitely going to take advantage of this from now on.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
Uzui Tengen
You wake up with the feeling that youโve been far too comfortable for far too long.
"Finally," Tengen sighs as you yawn.
"Finally what?"
"You woke up."
You slowly sit up, frowning.
"Sorry, did I weigh you down too much?"
Tengen snorts. "Of course not."
You let out a soft laugh and he smiles at the sight of you, suddenly, youโre aware of how close you are to Tengen and you tuck a strand of hair behind your ear nervously, even though you donโt really want to move away.
"And you didnโt move me?" you ask, trying to read his expression.
"There was no reason to," he shrugs. "It was a good scene."
You laugh. "What are you even talking about?"
He watches you closely, like heโs analyzing something about you that only he understands.
"Your face looks more relaxed when youโre asleep," he says in a way that sounds almost intimate.
That makes you go quiet, and without meaning to you start playing with your hair, a nervous habit you canโt quite control.
"You look really cute when you sleep, by the way," Tengen adds, leaning back slightly, never taking his eyes off you.
You jolt, blushing furiously, and hit his shoulder while complaining, too embarrassed to throw a sharp comment back at him.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
Himejima Gyomei
You wake up slowly, opening your eyes. You feel so relaxed, itโs like someone has taken care of everything around you so you wouldnโt have to worry about it.
It takes you a second to understand where you are, until you realize youโre resting against Gyomeiโs shoulder.
"Gyomeiโฆ Iโm sorry, I fell asleep without meaning to-"
"There is no need to apologize, Iโm glad you were able to rest," he replies with a small smile.
You notice his posture, heโs completely still, probably to make sure you could sleep without interruptions. That thought makes you sit up abruptly.
"Did I bother you?"
"No," he answers without hesitation.
Gyomei keeps his hands together as always, but thereโs a slight tension in his fingers.
"You slept for a considerable amount of time," he says after a few seconds.
You tilt your head. "Is that bad?"
"No, it means you were able to rest fully with my help."
That makes you glance at him from the side. Your heart starts pounding heavily in your chest, Gyomei is so considerate it makes you melt a little. Heโs adorable.
"If resting like that feels comforting to you... you can do it whenever you need to," he says, a slight blush on his cheeks.
Your cheeks flush as well and you shyly reach out to take his hand. Gyomei squeezes your hand back, returning your smile, and you think this man is going to be the end of your sanity one day.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
Rengoku Kyojuro
You wake up slowly, first with the feeling that the world doesnโt feel as heavy as before.
Then you notice a comforting warmth beside you and, almost instinctively, you curl up a little more before hearing a laugh that makes you sit up quickly.
"Iโm sorry! I didnโt mean to fall asleep like that," your voice comes out louder than you intended, breaking the calm.
Kyojuro reacts immediately, turning his head toward you with a bright smile.
"You donโt have to apologize! It didnโt bother me."
You shift slightly, carefully moving away.
"You couldโve woken me upโฆ Anyway, I can sleep when I get back to my estate..."
"I could," he replies without losing his smile. "But you were resting so deeply that I didnโt want to disturb you, I know you havenโt been sleeping well."
It doesnโt sound like an accusation, but your cheeks still heat up at feeling so exposed. Your fingers play with the edge of your haori, looking for any excuse not to meet his gaze.
"Latelyโฆ Iโve been having a bit of trouble falling asleep," you smile awkwardly.
"Then Iโm even happier that you were able to sleep today!"
You look up. Heโs still smiling, but not with the usual explosive enthusiasm he shows to others.
"Thank you, Kyojuro," you whisper, unable to look away from his eyes.
He smiles, his reply comes with the same warmth you felt when you woke up.
โYou can come to me anytime you need to rest!โ
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
I'm back!!!!
๐ฏ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐: ๐ป๐๐ ๐ฏ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐โ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐
M a s t e r l i s t โฟ A O 3 p r o f i l e
Pairing: Gyomei x reader
Word count: 1.8k
Warnings: none.
Tags: comedy โmutual pining โlove bets
โคท Everything starts as a ridiculous bet among the Hashira: no one believes that Gyomei can blushโฆ until they make you the โproof.โ
The barracks dining hall is never truly silent. Between the clatter of bowls, conversations crossing from one table to another, and the occasional laugh, the atmosphere feels surprisingly lively after several days of missions.
You are eating quietly, listening to the conversations around you.
โEnough,โ Sanemi growls, setting his chopsticks down on the table. โThat man doesnโt even flinch.โ
Shinobu looks up from her teacup with an amused smile.
โDo you give up that easily, Shinazugawa-san?โ
โShut up, idiot, I didnโt say that,โ he snaps, leaning threateningly over the table.
Obanai crosses his arms, looking thoughtfully between the two of them.
โI donโt remember ever seeing Himejima embarrassed even once.โ
โMe neither,โ Mitsuri admits, tilting her head slightly. โHe always seems so calm...โ
You frown slightly.
They have been talking about Himejima Gyomei for several minutes now and, no matter how much you try to ignore them, curiosity eventually gets the better of you.
โWhat the hell are you talking about?โ
The conversation stops abruptly.
โWe have a bet,โ Tengen replies with a smug smile.
โShinazugawa-san is convinced that Himejima-san is incapable of blushing,โ Shinobu explains.
โBecause he is.โ
โAnd we think he can get embarrassed,โ Mitsuri adds. โItโs just that no one has managed to provoke him.โ
Tengen rests his elbow on the table and points at you with a crooked smile.
โThe first person to make Himejima blush wins.โ
You canโt help but let out a low laugh.
โAre you seriously betting on something like that?โ you ask, unable to hide the disbelief in your voice as you pick up your chopsticks again. โYou all have way too much free time.โ
โWhatโs wrong with that?โ Tengen replies, raising an eyebrow. โThereโs money involved.โ
โAnd pride,โ Sanemi adds without hesitation. โA lot of pride.โ
You shake your head as you continue eating, convinced that the conversation cannot get any more ridiculous than it already is.
โWell, you can keep both things. Iโm not participating,โ you finish.
For a few seconds no one answers you.
You keep eating calmly until you start noticing several stares fixed on you. You slowly lift your gaze from the bowl and find practically everyone watching you in silence, as if they have all reached the same conclusion at the same time.
โโฆWhat?โ you ask with growing unease.
Tengen is the first to speak.
โI think we just found the perfect person.โ
You frown, shifting your gaze between him and Sanemi. The smile they both share is enough to make you suspect that whatever idea has just crossed their minds, you are not going to like it.
โDonโt even think about it.โ
โWhy not?โ Mitsuri asks innocently. โYouโre quite close to Himejima-san.โ
โExcuse me?โ you ask, almost choking on your noodles.
โWe always see you together,โ she continues as if nothing is wrong. โYou train often, you go on missions together when you can, and Himejima-san seems very comfortable with you.โ
โThat doesnโt mean anything,โ you reply quickly, feeling your cheeks warm under Shinobuโs knowing look.
โHe looks for you when he needs help, he is always asking about you, and you are the only person who manages to convince him to rest without him making any excuses,โ Obanai lists.
You open your mouth to respond, but no words come out. You had never stopped to think about it, you had always assumed Gyomei treated everyone like that.
โDonโt make up stories where there are none,โ you finally answer, regaining your composure as you return your attention to your food. โHimejima-san is considerate with everyone. If he asks how I am after a mission or insists on accompanying me when I am injured, itโs because thatโs how he is. There is no hidden meaning.โ
โMaybe,โ Mitsuri admits with a gentle smile. โBut if there really is nothing special between you two, then you shouldnโt have any problem taking part in the bet.โ
The logic of that statement makes you frown.
You let out a tired sigh and set your chopsticks down on the bowl for the second time since this ridiculous conversation started. You donโt understand when a calm meal turned into a judgment about your relationship with Gyomei, or why everyone seems so convinced there is something you have never even noticed.
โYou still havenโt convinced me,โ you say as you stand up from the table. โFind someone else for your bet. I have much more important things to do.โ
โToo late.โ
You slowly turn toward Tengen.
โWhat do you mean too late?โ
โMost of us have already placed bets on you.โ
The days pass and, as you expected, the absurd bet ends up disappearing from your mind. At least from yours, the others seem to remember it every time Gyomei enters a room, although they try to hide it poorly.
You, on the other hand, return to your usual routine. You train, complete missions, and when circumstances allow it, you spend part of the afternoon with Gyomei.
That afternoon training finishes later than usual. The barracks courtyard is still filled with scattered wooden swords and forgotten canteens, the Kakushi are collecting the equipment while the Hashira talk before leaving.
You remain next to Gyomei, talking about the mission you will share in a few days, listening carefully as he holds his rosary between his fingers, slowly moving each bead as he always does when he is thinking.
Suddenly, the thread holding the beads together gives way.
The snap is soft, but it is enough for dozens of small wooden beads to scatter and roll across the ground in every direction. Some hit the stones of the courtyard, others disappear under a nearby bench, and a few end up just a few centimeters from where you are standing.
โAh!โ
Without thinking twice, you bend down to pick them up before anyone steps on them. Gyomei does exactly the same, guided only by the sound of the pieces rolling across the floor.
For a few seconds neither of you says much; you simply gather the beads one by one until he extends an open hand toward you so you can place them on his palm.
โThank you,โ he says, with a small smile. โIโm sorry for making you waste your time.โ
โYou are not making me waste my time,โ you reply with a sigh as you place another bead in his hand. โBesides, if I didnโt help you, you would probably end up looking for one for hours.โ
A low laugh escapes his lips.
When you think you have found the last bead, you stand up to hand it to him, but something gently pulls at your hair. You frown and bring a hand up, discovering that one of the small wooden pieces has tangled itself in several strands without you noticing.
You try to free it carefully, although every movement seems to make it worse.
โIs something wrong?โ Gyomei asks, sensing the faint sound of frustration you let out.
โNothing importantโฆ there is just a bead stuck in my hair.โ
You fall silent for a moment as you try again, but the result is the same.
โI think the more I move it, the more it gets tangled.โ
Gyomei remains still for a few seconds before speaking.
โIf you allow meโฆ maybe I can help you.โ
The suggestion surprises you enough to stop all your movements.
โโฆAlright,โ you murmur, feeling your heart speed up.
He steps toward you carefully. He slowly raises a hand until he finds the strand of hair where the bead is trapped and gently moves several locks away from your face to locate it. His fingers barely brush your hair as he untangles the small knot with infinite patience, focused only on not hurting you.
You remain completely still, swallowing heavily, suddenly feeling your mouth go dry.
When he finally manages to free the bead, his fingers accidentally brush against yours as he places it in your palm. It is minimal contact, almost nonexistent, yet enough for both of you to look up at the exact same time.
Only then does Gyomei seem to realize how little distance there is between you.
His breath catches for barely a second before he steps back with a speed uncharacteristic of him.
โโฆForgive me.โ
His voice is still calm, but a faint pink color slowly spreads across his cheeks until it reaches the tips of his ears.
You feel the heat settle in your face at almost the same time as you lower your gaze to the wooden bead still resting between your fingers, unable to find anything coherent to say after such an unexpectedly intimate moment.
The silence lasts just long enough for laughter to erupt a few meters away from you.
โI knew it!โ
Startled, you turn around and discover that all the Hashira are still in the courtyard, no one has left yet.
Tengen, unable to contain his laughter, points directly at Gyomei.
โI think we all just saw the same thing.โ
Sanemi snorts in clear frustration before pulling out a few coins from his pocket and reluctantly placing them in Tengenโs hand.
โYou are an asshole, did you know that?โ he mutters.
Confused, you shift your gaze between everyone without understanding what just happened.
โWhat are you even talking about?โ you say, feeling a small irritation building in your chest.
โCongratulations!โ Shinobu says with a smile. โYou just won the bet.โ
You blink several times, convinced that at some point someone will explain the joke you are clearly not part of. However, all you find when you look around their faces are satisfied smiles, amused expressions, and in Sanemiโs case, such obvious resignation that it almost looks comical.
โI thought I made it clear that I wasnโt participating.โ
โCome on,โ Sanemi interrupts, crossing his arms. โDo you really think that after everything we saw that day in the dining hall, we were going to let this damn opportunity pass?โ
You lower your gaze to the small wooden bead still between your fingers. Everything had happened so naturally that you had not even thought about the ridiculous bet they had been talking about for days.
You had helped Gyomei exactly as you would have done any other afternoon, without hidden intentions, without strategies, and certainly without expecting to cause such a reaction.
You shake your head as you return his rosary bead to Gyomei, trying to ignore the slight warmth still lingering on your cheeks.
โIโm sorry,โ you say with an embarrassed smile. โIt seems I accidentally got you involved in all this.โ
Gyomei receives the small wooden piece with both hands and remains silent for a few moments. When he finally speaks, his voice keeps the same usual calm, although the faint pink tone still coloring his ears reveals that he has not fully recovered.
โYou donโt need to apologize,โ his lips curve into a smile so subtle it could easily go unnoticed. โIt wasโฆ a pleasant moment.โ
For the first time since you have known him, you are the one who looks away first.
Behind you, someone lets out a whistle.
โThey are idiots,โ Sanemi comments with a defeated expression.
โLeave it,โ Tengen replies through laughter as he pats his shoulder. โI think the next bet is going to be how long it takes those two to realize it.โ
You don't hear the rest, as you walk away with Gyomei, who quietly asks you if you hurt yourself when the bead got tangled in your hair, it's so sweet that you can only smile at him while shaking your head.
Yes, the Hashira will probably make another bet again soon.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
Iโm posting what I had pending because Iโm going on a short trip hehe
๐บ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐บ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐: ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐โ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐โ ๐๐๐๐ ๐
M a s t e r l i s t โฟ A O 3 p r o f i l e โฟ P r e v i o u s p a r t
Pairing: Sanemi x fem!reader
Word count: 1.1k
Warnings: none.
Tags: comedyโromanceโslice of life
โคท Sanemi doesn't forgive Genya but he also can't deny that, thanks to that, there's nothing left between you two that remains confusing.
โI switched the letters.โ
Genya doesnโt look at either of you when he says it, and for a moment the room seems to shrink. You let out a breath, you had already figured it out, but the betrayed expression on your boyfriend, Shinazugawa Sanemi, makes it clear he didnโt have the slightest suspicion.
โWhat did you fucking say?โ he asks slowly, with a murderous expression.
Genya swallows and this time he lifts his gaze, first toward him and then toward you, looking for moral support.
โI switched the letters, Nii-san, you needed help.โ
โWhat the hell were you thinking, brat!?โ he explodes, stepping forward with a clearly homicidal energy. โI didnโt need anyoneโs help, least of all yours.โ
โIt was Kochou-samaโs idea, actually.โ
The mention of Shinobu startles you. Although she is a woman who always has a disturbing smile on her face and often likes to play jokes, especially on Giyuu, it surprises you that this time it is Sanemi who has become the target of her teasing.
โThat womanโฆโ he mutters through his teeth. โIโm going to kill you, where is she!? Bring her to me right now.โ
The air tenses dangerously, and you know exactly where this is going, so you step in and place your hands on his chest to stop him before he turns Genya into a medical problem. Sanemi stops, looking at you as if he is still deciding whether to be angry with you too or not.
โRelax, Sanemi, thanks to them we were able to talk about our feelings.โ
The word โfeelingsโ seems to short circuit his brain.
Sanemi opens his mouth, closes it, and for a second he looks genuinely defeated, Genya, on his part, lets out a small snort of pride that is completely out of place, and that sound is enough for Sanemi to turn back toward him as if he just remembered why he was angry in the first place.
โAre you laughing?โ his voice drops two dangerous tones.
โIโm not laughing,โ Genya answers too quickly.
โFuck off, yes you are laughing.โ
โI told you Iโm not laughing.โ
โIโm going to wipe that smile off your face with my fists.โ
โCan you two stop already?โ you donโt sound especially patient as you shift your gaze between Sanemi and Genya.
Sanemi goes still again, looking at you as if the real problem in the situation is you and not his younger brother with questionable survival instincts, then he lets out a tense huff, clearly torn between staying angry or accepting he no longer has control over his life.
Genya takes advantage of that second of peace to step back.
โWell,โ he says with a shrug. โIโm just saying, if it werenโt for me, youโd still be looking at each other weird for another six months.โ
Sanemi makes a sound that is half growl and half threat and you smile.
โAnd heโs right,โ you respond, holding back your laugh.
The silence lasts a few seconds before Sanemi decides he has had enough of all of this.
โGet out of here,โ he tells Genya, pointing at the door.
โWith pleasure,โ Genya responds, already half turning around.
โAnd donโt touch anything that isnโt yours again if you donโt want me to cut your fingers off,โ Sanemi continues.
โGot it.โ
โDonโt even look at it.โ
โI said I got it, Nii-san!โ Genya turns to look at you. โSee you later, Nee-san!โ
And when Genya finally disappears through the door and Sanemi takes a deep breath as if he has just survived a battle much more complicated than any mission.
โYour brother is a problem,โ Sanemi lets out, still with a tight brow and his gaze fixed on the door where Genya just disappeared.
You lean a little against the wall, crossing your arms as you try not to laugh too soon.
โHeโs your brother,โ you remind him, with a calm that doesnโt help his mood at all.
โDoesnโt matter, he treats you better than he treats me,โ he grunts immediately, turning toward you with a tired expression. โHe always sticks his nose where it doesnโt belong and shows up at the worst moments.โ
โMaybe he treats me better because I donโt insult him or threaten him every time I see him,โ you roll your eyes, pushing off the wall and stepping closer to him. โIf I werenโt here, youโd already be chasing him around the estate.โ
โI would,โ he answers without hesitation.
โSanemiโฆโ
โWhat?โ
โYouโre not going to hit him.โ
โI havenโt decided yet.โ
You let out a soft laugh and take another step closer, close enough for his gaze to drop to you automatically and for you to have all of his attention.
โFine,โ you say with fake softness, โthen stay angry with me instead of him. Itโs more useful.โ
โThat doesnโt make sense,โ he replies, frowning.
โOf course it does,โ you answer, tilting your head slightly, โIf youโre angry at me, Iโll keep you trapped here in my room.โ
Sanemi opens his mouth to argue, but nothing comes out right away. Your comment is enough for his gaze to drift over another part of your face before returning to your eyes.
โNowโฆโ you start, lower, deliberately breaking the heavy air, โwhere were we?โ
You lift your hands and slide them over his shoulders first, slowly, stroking him gently, feeling every tense muscle under your palms, then you let your arms glide up to wrap around his neck, and when you do, you notice his breath catch slightly.
โYou should thank him, you know,โ you murmur, bringing your face closer until your nose softly brushes his. โThanks to him, youโve got a girlfriend now.โ
Sanemi lets out a short exhale through his nose, almost a laugh that doesnโt quite make it.
โI donโt know whether to thank him or beat him up, youโre a real problem.โ
His hand settles on your waist, closing the remaining distance between you, and your lips meet in a kiss.
The kiss starts unhurried, but that caution doesnโt last long, because Sanemi doesnโt know how to hold back for very long, and even less when it has anything to do with you. The kiss deepens, his hand tightening on your waist making it clear he doesnโt plan on letting you go anytime soon, and you respond by holding onto his neck more firmly, pressing your chest against his.
When you separate just enough to catch your breath, he pinches your swollen lower lip with his fingers and you protest, lightly hitting his hand.
โYouโre impossible,โ he murmurs, although it no longer sounds like a complaint.
โAnd yet here you are,โ you respond with a smile, brushing the strands of hair at the nape of his neck.
Sanemi closes his eyes for a second, as if he is seriously considering all the decisions in his life.
โIโm going to age badly with you,โ he murmurs.
And yet it doesnโt sound like a complaint.
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข
๐ป๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐: ๐๐๐'๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฏ๐๐๐๐๐๐ +๐๐
M a s t e r l i s t โฟ A O 3 p r o f i l e
Pairings: Giyuu x reader
Word count: 2.0k
Warnings: NFSW, explicit sexual content, the reader has pussy.
Tags: smutโestablished relationship โromance
โคท When you come back late from a mission, Giyuu is already waiting for you. The night ends up being another way of reminding you that, even if it's in secret, you can always come back to him.
The night wraps around the corridors of the Tomioka estate when you return. The faint glow of the paper lamps barely manages to light up the empty hallways, casting soft shadows over the polished wood. At this hour there shouldn't be anyone awake anymore, and yet you find him there.
Tomioka Giyuu stands with his back resting against the wall and his gaze fixed ahead, motionless like a statue. When he sees you appear at the end of the corridor he doesn't smile or greet you, he doesn't even ask where you've been, he simply pushes off the wall and starts walking toward his room.
If you didn't know him you would think he's an unpleasant person for looking at you and ignoring you, but after so many years spending time with him, you understand between the lines that he wants you to follow him.
Your footsteps echo softly behind his as you walk through the hallway. Neither of you speaks, you have never really needed to say much.
Even so, the relationship still feels new to you in certain moments. It's been almost a year since you started dating in secret, a full year of discreet meetings, fleeting glances during gatherings and stolen conversations between missions.
No one has forbidden you from being together, but between the responsibilities you both carry on your shoulders, the hierarchies and the constant attention the Hashira receive, keeping it a secret ended up being the simplest and most comfortable option.
Because of that, in front of others, you barely look like anything more than comrades.
When you reach the door, you reach out to open it, but the sudden brush of fingers around your wrist makes you stop.
"You came back late," he says quietly, although there is no reproach in his words, only concern.
The small accusation pulls a tired smile from you as you look up to observe him better under the dim light of the corridor.
"Were you waiting for me?"
The question leaves your lips with a slightly amused tone, and for a moment you watch how his eyes drift away from yours. It's a small gesture, almost unnoticeable, but enough to give him away.
"No."
Your smile widens. "Of course."
Giyuu barely furrows his brow, as if he doesn't appreciate you teasing him, although the truth is you've long realized that his patience with you is much greater than the one he has with others. Eventually, he lets out a very light sigh and opens the door to his room without bothering to keep defending a lost cause.
The inside greets you with a comforting sense of calm. A single lamp remains lit on a low table, Giyuu steps in first and carefully folds his haori over one of the chair backs before turning toward you. The door closes behind you with a soft click and suddenly the rest of the world feels far away.
"I'm exhausted," you say with a sigh, letting yourself fall onto Giyuu's futon.
The mattress sinks under your weight and for the first time since you've returned you allow the tiredness to settle into your body. During the entire mission, youโd been constantly on the move, ignoring the soreness that had built up in your muscles and the heaviness you've been carrying for hours, but now that you're there, surrounded by the calm of the room and away from any immediate obligation, it's impossible to keep pretending it doesn't affect you.
You close your eyes for a few seconds while resting your head against the pillow.
"Take those clothes off before lying on my futon," Giyuu wrinkles his nose and you laugh, sitting back up.
"You're right, sorry."
The exhaustion immediately protests in every muscle of your body, and for a moment you consider ignoring Giyuu and collapsing back onto the futon, but even you have to admit that the clothes you're wearing have survived several days of travel, sweat and dust.
โBesides, you smell like an animal.โ
You gasp in offense, turning around to look at him with one hand pressed to your chest.
โDid you just insult me?โ
โOf course not, Iโm just stating the truth,โ he says in a flat voice.
โThat doesnโt make it better,โ you complain, though the smile never leaves your lips.
You head toward the folding screen placed in a corner of the room. As you walk over there, you notice how the warm, comforting heat of the room slowly starts replacing the night cold that had clung to your skin during the trip back.
Once you reach the other side of the screen, you begin undoing the layers of your uniform with slow movements. The simple act of loosening your belt makes your shoulders relax a little more.
From the other side you hear the faint sound of a kettle being moved. Giyuu is clearly trying to look busy.
The idea makes you smile.
You take off your haori first and fold it over a nearby chair, then you unbutton your uniform while you sigh, feeling more relieved.
โAm I that bad?โ you ask while looking for something more comfortable to wear.
For a few seconds you only get silence.
โIn what regard?โ
โThe smell.โ
You hear a slight movement on the other side.
โYes.โ
โGiyuu!โ you shout with your cheeks flushed, โAlright, Iโll go take a bath.โ
And maybe because you havenโt seen him in several days, because youโre too tired to behave with dignity, or simply because you like seeing him lose his composure, you decide to keep talking before he can respond.
โWill you join me?โ
For a few seconds you hear absolutely nothing from the other side of the screen, and the lack of response is so suspicious that you have to hold back a smile.
โWell, that was a pretty decisive no.โ
You hear the sound of a cup being placed on the table.
โI didnโt say no,โ his voice suddenly sounds closer.
You finish taking off the last pieces of clothing and peek out, showing your nudity partially.
โSoโฆ are we going?โ you tilt your head as you ask, and Giyuu covers the lower part of his face with the back of his hand, you can see a faint blush on his ears, cute.
โIโll go prepare it,โ is the last thing he says before disappearing into the bathroom.
You step out from behind the screen without hiding your nudity, and when you enter the bathroom, Giyuu chokes slightly on his saliva and quickly looks away, nervous.
โWeren't we past this stage of our relationship already?โ you raise an eyebrow, but you move closer to him just to tease him a little more.
โYouโre usually not this shameless,โ he says, stretching out his arm to twist a strand of your hair between his fingers.
You lift your hand calmly and brush just barely against the fabric of his sleeve, a minimal touch, but enough for his breathing to shift slightly.
โI canโt help it,โ you murmur, rising onto your tiptoes. โIโve missed you a lot.โ
Giyuu doesnโt respond with words. Instead, his hand slowly rises to your jaw, his thumb barely brushing the corner of your mouth, and then he kisses you. You respond by gripping the fabric of his shirt, wrinkling it, pulling him closer until thereโs no space left between the two of you.
His fingers trace a downward path along your spine, the heat of his palms burning against your skin, and when he reaches the lower curve of your back, his hands open, holding the full width of your waist.
You arch slightly against him, an instinctive movement that makes your chest brush against his chest, and you jump, wrapping your legs around his hips with a momentum that forces him to take half a step back to keep his balance.
โGiyuuโฆโ you moan and he growls, lowering his lips to your neck to leave you small kisses that leave marks.
You unbutton his shirt, and with a few tugs, you manage to pull it off him. His knee accidentally presses between your thighs brushing against your already wet clit. You tilt your head back, resting it against the wall, and a more needy moan escapes your lips
Out of the corner of your eye, you notice a slight smile on Giyuuโs lips.
"Calm downโฆ you donโt want them to hear us,โ he murmurs, pulling away as he lowers his pants.
โHurry up,โ you say, tugging on his arm to pull him closer again.
As he moves in, his cock brushes against your pussy and you both let out a breathy sound. Giyuu uses your wetness to lubricate his member and brings his mouth close to your ear.
โI can tell you've really missed me.โ
Your legs cling to him as if you're afraid he'll disappear. You feel him growing more anxious, his breath coming in gasps, his hands gripping your hips with an almost trembling strength, and it's that mix of urgency and tenderness that makes you melt even more.
Without taking his lips off your ear, Giyuu gradually slides his cock inside you, filling you, each movement deeper than before, and you welcome him with your back arched.
โDamn, Iโve missed you too,โ his voice sounds so broken that you moan in response.
โP-Pleaseโฆ Faster,โ you gasp as your hips move more urgently.
The silver light of the moon climbs up the curtain, making Giyuuโs skin look even paler, you look at him completely absorbed, totally in love with the man who treats you like the most precious thing in the world.
The room fills with heavy breathing and the muffled impact of bodies, wet and soft, moving in an increasingly intense rhythm. You bite his shoulder and he tenses up, gripping your thigh, and that pressure sends a shiver through you.
With each thrust, you feel the pleasure begin to cloud your vision, your pulse racing until it throbs through every limb of your body. You canโt keep your eyes open; you need to close them and let yourself be swept away by the wave of sensations overwhelming you.
Sweat mixes with the steam that fills the room, and, for a moment, you lose all sense of sound, cold, or anything outside the bathroom. Only Giyuuโs hands, resting on your back, soft but steady, holding you like a castaway clinging to the last piece of driftwood in the sea.
As you feel yourself nearing orgasm, your body tenses, and he lowers his head until it meets your mouth, claiming your lips again, making you lose your breath against his tongue.
โGiyuu, Iโm close,โ you murmur, clenching your thighs around his hips.
โMe too,โ he growls as the rhythm of his thrusts becomes erratic. โSay my name again.โ
โG-Giyuuโฆโ
You shudder as your orgasm courses through your body and your legs tremble; your fingernails dig into his shoulders, and you can barely breathe. He follows you just a moment later, pressing his face to your neck to suppress a sound of pleasure that runs through him from head to toe.
Steam fogs the mirrors and windows, and for a moment it seems like only the warmth of his arms around you exists.
You remain like that, wordless, long after the trembling in your muscles has settled.
He is the one who regains balance first and, without letting you go, turns to sit on the edge of the bathtub, pulling you into his lap. His chin rests on your shoulder, his fingers stroke your waist, and he breathes deeply as if he still canโt believe youโre here, this close, back again.
โWell, now itโs my turn to relax you, Iโll take away the animal smell,โ his breath tickles your ear and you laugh.
Your laugh slips out weakly as you rest your forehead against his head, still feeling the warmth of his sweaty skin under your fingers, which trace his muscular arms.
โIโm happy to see you again,โ you whisper closing your eyes.
โAnd Iโm glad you came back.โ
โขโโโโโโโขยฐโขโฟโขยฐโขโโโโโโโข